Getty ImagesMeningitis B, known as MenB, is the strain of bacteria behind the outbreak of meningitis cases in young people in Kent, experts have confirmed. It is rarer but far more serious than viral meningitis and can lead to blood poisoning or sepsis, and affect the brain. Some cases are fatal. There have been two deaths in Canterbury and more students are in hospital. Babies are routinely offered a vaccine against MenB, and have been since 2015, but the UK's current generation of older teenagers and university students have not, since the shot was not available when they were born.The UK decided against running a catch-up campaign to vaccinate teenagers, but some parents have been buying the jab privately. Who is right?Teenagers are currently offered another meningitis vaccine - the MenACWY vaccine - which protects against some other strains, but not MenB. Follow our live coverage of the meningitis outbreak in Kent Communication 'poor', say bereaved parents Parents of woman who died in 2025 call for government supportHelen and Lee Draper's daughter, Meg, died last October from meningitis B while at university. They say they would have paid the £220 to have her vaccinated privately "in a heartbeat".They told BBC Breakfast News it was devastating to hear that more students were losing their lives to the illness. Helen said: "Megan had called us on the Friday night to say she was feeling a bit lethargic and she didn't really want to go out that evening. "That rang alarm bells with us because Megan always wanted to go out and socialise so that was the first point. "She'd gone to bed, she'd woken up in the morning and she was nauseous and she had a rash on her stomach. "She'd contacted me and then said I'm going back to sleep to try and sleep it off. She woke up at 3 o'clock in the afternoon, the rash had spread, she felt worse, her arms and legs were aching and she just felt really unwell, so we advised her to contact 111 to seek medical help."Lee said parents needed to be aware that the meningitis vaccination teenagers routinely get on the NHS doesn't cover them against all strains. "That's where I think the communication's been really, really poor over the years," he told the BBC. "We assumed that Megan had had a meningitis vaccination and to us, we sent her off to university thinking that. It was after we knew what strain she had, meningitis B, that she wasn't vaccinated against that and we had no idea that she didn't have protection against that."Call for 'catch-up' MenB vaccination campaignFormer health minister Helen Whatley, Conservative MP for Faversham and Mid Kent, said the government should consider a MenB "catch-up" vaccination campaign for young people.Meningitis can affect anyone at any time. The groups most at risk of becoming ill with MenB disease are babies and young children under five, followed by teenagers and young people aged 15 to 24.Experts say the case for whether to vaccinate teenagers against Men B is complicated. While the vaccine is great at protecting infants, it does not work so well in young people.Professor Sir Andrew Pollard, an immunologist at Oxford University, told the BBC: "The B strain is more complicated because although we call it the B strain, it's actually a collection of a very large number of different strains, some of which are covered by the B vaccine and some aren't."The MenB vaccine has been developed to offer protection against as many as possible, but it does not work against all.Some people carry the various types of meningitis B bacteria harmlessly in their nose and throat. They don't get sick, but can spread it to others who may. It is estimated around one in four teenagers and young people carry meningitis-causing bacteria in the back of their throats.The MenB vaccine is not great at preventing that transmission, even if it is a good match for the strain carried. And the vaccine does not protect for a particularly long time, which is why advisers to the government - the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) -determined the MenB vaccine was not cost-effective for teens. In an outbreak, the priority is to stop more people catching the infection and getting sick.Pollard said: "The problem with vaccination is it doesn't protect you immediately and it takes some time after vaccination for the immune response to kick in."He continued that therefore what was needed was to do what was being done in Kent which is give antibiotics to protect individuals including those who are healthy but have the strain in their throat to stop them transmitting it to other people.Generally, it takes a couple of weeks to get the fullest protection from a vaccine and some require booster doses.A small group of teens and adults are recommended to have the MenB jab on the NHS - people with certain long-term health conditions who are at greater risk, such as those with no spleen, or a spleen that does not work properly, sickle cell anaemia, coeliac disease and immune disorders. Paying for a vaccine privatelySome parents have paid private doctors to get the vaccine for teenagers but it is not cheap. High street pharmacies offer a full course of two doses for around £220.The charity Meningitis Now says MenB jabs should be available "at a fair price".It has been calling for this vaccine to be offered more widely to protect teenagers and young people, but the NHS does not currently offer a catch-up campaign for MenB, unlike for some other vaccines.There are several other childhood vaccines that help prevent other types of meningitis. The MenACWY vaccine offers protection against four types of bacteria that can cause meningitis - meningococcal groups A, C, W and Y - and is offered to teenagers aged 14 years old.Anyone concerned about which vaccines they have had is advised to contact their GP to find out which vaccines they have already had if they are unsure, or look at their red book which records vaccines that have been given. The red book is given to parents when their child is first born.The MenACWY vaccine is free for anyone who missed out at school until your 25th birthday.Dr Leyla Hannbeck, from the Independent Pharmacies Association, said pharmacies - particularly those in Kent - have seen a surge in demand for private MenB jabs following the current outbreak. Pharmacies are running out of stock and some have no stock left, she added. Is there a risk to the wider population?Dr Gayatri Amirthalingam, deputy director of the immunisation and vaccine preventable diseases division at the UKHSA, told BBC Radio 4's Today Programme the outbreak of meningitis had been "unusual" but she did not believe there was a current risk to anyone outside of the Kent region."I think it's important to stress that the cases have all been linked to a particular geographical area, in the Kent area."We have no evidence of any wider spread."So it's really important to reassure people across the country that there's no evidence of wider spread at the current time but it's important, in terms of vaccination, to make sure that your children are fully up to date with the vaccines that are available, and to be alert to the signs and symptoms of meningococcal disease."Symptoms can develop suddenly and can include:A rash that doesn't fade when pressed with a glassSudden onset of high feverSevere and worsening headacheStiff neckVomiting and diarrhoeaJoint and muscle painDislike of bright lightsVery cold hands and feetSeizuresConfusion/deliriumExtreme sleepiness/difficulty wakingStudents in the affected area of Canterbury are being advised to trust their instincts - do not wait for all symptoms to appear or for a rash to develop before seeking help.More on this storyFamily 'beyond devastated' after meningitis deathWhat are the symptoms of meningitis and is there a vaccine?HealthMeningitis