On January 14, 2026, Manitoba Health issued a province-wide advisory urging Manitobans — including residents of Morden — to check their vaccination records following a rise in cases of invasive meningococcal disease (IMD). The advisory was prompted by an outbreak of serogroup W that has been active since December 2023.
The province reported 23 confirmed serogroup W cases and four deaths in 2025, roughly five times the typical annual case count. Manitoba Health warns IMD can progress very rapidly — about one in 10 people with IMD do not survive — and survivors can experience long-term effects such as hearing loss, brain damage or limb amputation.
Most cases have occurred in the Northern Health Region and have disproportionately affected Indigenous communities; infants under 12 months are at highest risk. Because of inter-regional travel and existing eligibility rules, health officials are encouraging all Manitobans to check immunization records.
Parents of children born between Jan. 1, 2020, and Feb. 28, 2023, should verify whether their child previously received only the monovalent Men-C-C vaccine. Those children are now eligible for a dose of the quadrivalent Men-C-ACYW vaccine (which protects against serogroups A, C, Y and W) under Manitoba’s “once eligible, always eligible” policy.
Residents in Southern Health–Santé Sud can confirm eligibility or book an appointment through their health-care provider or local public health office. Manitoba’s public guidance notes that the publicly funded meningococcal vaccine is not administered by pharmacists.
Meningococcal bacteria spread through close contact — coughing, sneezing, kissing, or sharing personal items such as water bottles, cigarettes or lipstick — and vaccination is the primary tool to reduce transmission and control the outbreak.
Local reporting (Brandon Sun, Jan. 14, 2026) and the provincial media bulletin note that health officials, including Health Minister Uzoma Asagwara, are urging Manitobans to stay up to date with routine meningococcal immunizations. More details on eligibility and clinic information are available from Manitoba Health’s news release (Jan. 14, 2026) and the provincial meningococcal disease web page.
