Health and Economic Impact of the United States Varicella Vaccination Program, 1996-2020

The aim of this study was to evaluate the health and economic impact of the varicella vaccination program on varicella disease in the United States (US), 1996-2020.

Analysis was conducted using the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention or published annual population-based varicella incidence, and varicella-associated hospitalization, outpatient visit, and mortality rates in the US population aged 0-49 years during 1996-2020 (range, 199.5-214.2 million persons) compared to before vaccination (1990-1994). Disease costs were estimated using the societal perspective. Vaccination program costs included costs of vaccine, administration, postvaccination adverse events, and travel and work time lost to obtain vaccination. All costs were adjusted to 2020 US dollars using a 3% annual discount rate. The main outcome measures were the number of varicella-associated cases, hospitalizations, hospitalization days, and premature deaths prevented; life-years saved; and net societal savings from the US varicella vaccination program.

Among US persons aged 0-49 years, during 1996-2020, it is estimated that more than 91 million varicella cases, 238 000 hospitalizations, 1.1 million hospitalization days, and almost 2000 deaths were prevented and 118 000 life-years were saved by the varicella vaccination program, at net societal savings of $23.4 billion.

Varicella vaccination has resulted in substantial disease prevention and societal savings for the US over 25 years of program implementation.