title: Economic evaluation of meningococcal serogroup C conjugate vaccination programmes in The Netherlands and its impact on decision-making.
abstract: The cost-effectiveness of one time vaccination of all persons aged 14 months to 18 years (catch-up programme) and of routine childhood immunisation at either ages 2 + 3 + 4 months, 5 + 6 months, or 14 months with a meningococcal C conjugate vaccine was estimated for The Netherlands, from a societal and a health care payer perspective. A decision analysis cohort model was employed (time horizon 77 years), direct and indirect costs (friction cost method) were considered and future costs and effects were discounted at 4%. The results showed that all vaccination options yield a substantial health gain and that the catch-up programme and routine vaccination at 14 months render favourable cost-effectiveness ratios: between about 13,200 and 17,700 per life year gained for the catch-up programme and between about 2200 and 2400 per life year gained for routine childhood vaccination at 14 months, depending on the perspective. In comparison to vaccination at 14 months, routine childhood vaccination during the first year of life is much less cost-effective: each additional life year gained costs approximately 147,000 (2 + 3 + 4 months) or 102,000 (5 + 6 months), from both perspectives. Additionally, inclusion of the likely herd immunity effect of the catch-up programme increases these incremental cost-effectiveness ratios. These results played a major role in the decision to add meningococcal C vaccination to the routine childhood immunisation schedule at 14 months and to implement a catch-up vaccination programme in The Netherlands in 2002.
authors.affiliation: GSF--National Research Center for Environment and Health, Institute of Health Economics and Health Care Management (IGM), Ingolstädter Landstrasse 1, 85764 Neuherberg, Germany. robert.welte@gsf.de
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Welte
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: van den Dobbelsteen
authors.forename: J M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Bos
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: de Melker
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: van Alphen
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Spanjaard
authors.forename: H C
authors.initials: HC
authors.lastname: Rümke
authors.forename: M J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Postma
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003661:Decision Support Techniques; D006801:Humans; D007115:Immunization Schedule; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D032541:Mass Vaccination / Q000191:economics*; D008589:Meningococcal Infections / Q000517:prevention & control*; D022401:Meningococcal Vaccines / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000191:economics*; D009345:Neisseria meningitidis / Q000276:immunology*; D038542:Neisseria meningitidis, Serogroup C; D009426:Netherlands
chemical_list: D022401:Meningococcal Vaccines; C410218:serogroup C meningococcal conjugate vaccine