Although 13-valent pneumococcal vaccine is more costly than PCV7, net cost savings expected
TUESDAY, July 7, 2015 (HealthDay News) — The 13-valent pneumococcal vaccine (PCV-13) is expected to be cost saving compared with PCV7, according to a study published in the July issue of Health Affairs.
Noting that the U.S. Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices has recommended that PCV7 be replaced with PCV13, Michele A. Kohli, Ph.D., from Optum in Burlington, Canada, and colleagues examined the budgetary impact of routine use of PCV13 on public and private U.S. insurance payers from 2010 to 2019.
The researchers note that implementation of the PCV13 vaccine is expected to cost $3.5 billion and $2.6 billion more than PCV7, for public and private payers, respectively. However, during the 10-year period, PCV13 is expected to provide net cost savings of $6.1 and $4.2 billion, respectively, to those payers by preventing pneumococcal disease and its related costs. For uninsured patients, whose costs ultimately fall on those payers, an additional $1.7 billion would be realized in cost savings.
“The implementation of the PCV13 vaccine as a replacement for PCV7 is cost saving for both the public and the private sectors,” the authors write. “New vaccines, such as PCV13, are more expensive than their predecessors. However, they prevent serious and costly disease outcomes and therefore represent an efficient use of health care dollars.”
The study was partially funded by Pfizer; several authors disclosed financial ties to Optum, which was contracted by Pfizer to conduct this research.
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