[Economic evaluation of an infant immunization program in Mexico, based on 13-valent pneumococcal conjugated...

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Health Economics
• Vaccinology

Background:

• Pneumococcal disease poses a significant threat to child health, causing morbidity and mortality.
• The introduction of new pneumococcal conjugate vaccines (PCVs) necessitates evaluating their public health impact and cost-effectiveness.
• Mexico's context requires specific analysis of PCV implementation strategies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To estimate the cost-effectiveness and cost-utility of immunization strategies using available PCVs in Mexico.
• To compare different valencies of PCVs (7, 10, and 13-valent) from a third-party payer perspective.
• To inform public health policy regarding pneumococcal vaccination in children under two years.

Main Methods:

• A decision tree model was employed to assess the economic and health outcomes of vaccination strategies.
• The model simulated lifetime impact, incorporating a 5% annual discount rate.
• Data on effectiveness, utility, epidemiology, and disease costs were sourced from published literature; univariate sensitivity analyses were conducted.

Main Results:

• All PCV strategies dominated the no-vaccination approach, demonstrating cost-effectiveness.
• The 13-valent PCV strategy yielded the highest impact, preventing 16,205 deaths and gaining 332,006 QALYs, with savings of US$1,307 per child.
• The 7-valent and 10-valent PCV strategies also showed significant benefits, preventing 13,806 and 5,589 deaths, respectively, and generating substantial QALY gains and cost savings.

Conclusions:

• Immunization strategies utilizing 7, 10, and 13-valent PCVs are cost-saving in Mexico.
• The 13-valent PCV strategy provides superior health outcomes and greater economic savings compared to the 7- and 10-valent PCV strategies.
• These findings support the adoption of higher-valent PCVs for enhanced public health impact and cost-efficiency.