title: Cost-Effectiveness of Vaccinating Immunocompetent ≥65 Year Olds with the 13-Valent Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine in England.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Recently a large clinical trial showed that the use of 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV13) among immunocompetent individuals aged 65 years and over was safe and efficacious. The aim of this study was to assess the cost-effectiveness of vaccinating immunocompetent 65 year olds with PCV13 vaccine in England. England is a country with universal childhood pneumococcal conjugate vaccination programme in place (7-valent (PCV7) since 2006 and PCV13 since 2010), as well as a 23-valent pneumococcal polysaccharide (PPV23) vaccination programme targeting clinical risk-groups and those ≥65 years.
  
  
  METHODS
  A static cohort cost-effectiveness model was developed to follow a cohort of 65 year olds until death, which will be vaccinated in the autumn of 2016 with PCV13. Sensitivity analysis was performed to test the robustness of the results.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The childhood vaccination programme with PCV7 has induced herd protection among older unvaccinated age groups, with a resultant low residual disease burden caused by PCV7 vaccine types. We show similar herd protection effects for the 6 additional serotypes included in PCV13, and project a new low post-introduction equilibrium of vaccine-type disease in 2018/19. Applying these incidence projections for both invasive disease and community-acquired pneumonia (CAP), and using recent measures of vaccine efficacy against these endpoints for ≥65 year olds, we estimate that vaccination of a cohort of immunocompetent 65 year olds with PCV13 would directly prevent 26 cases of IPD, 69 cases of CAP and 15 deaths. The associated cost-effectiveness ratio is £257,771 per QALY gained (using list price of £49.10 per dose and £7.51 administration costs) and is therefore considered not cost-effective. To obtain a cost-effective programme the price per dose would need to be negative. The results were sensitive to disease incidence, waning vaccine protection and case fatality rate; despite this, the overall conclusion was robust.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Vaccinating immunocompetent individuals aged ≥65 years with PCV13 is efficacious. However the absolute incidence of vaccine-type disease will likely become very low due to wider benefits of the childhood PCV13 vaccination programme, such that a specific PCV13 vaccination programme targeting the immunocompetent elderly would not be cost-effective.
authors.affiliation: Department of Infectious Disease Epidemiology, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, Keppel street, WC1E 7HT, London, England.|Immunisation, Hepatitis and Blood Safety Department, Public Health England, 61 Colindale Avenue, NW9 5EQ, London, England.
authors.forename: Albert Jan
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: van Hoek
authors.affiliation: Immunisation, Hepatitis and Blood Safety Department, Public Health England, 61 Colindale Avenue, NW9 5EQ, London, England.
authors.forename: Elizabeth
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Miller
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003362:Cost-Benefit Analysis; D004739:England; D006801:Humans; D007121:Immunocompetence; D022242:Pneumococcal Vaccines / Q000191:economics / Q000276:immunology*; D014611:Vaccination / Q000191:economics*; D018074:Vaccines, Conjugate / Q000191:economics / Q000276:immunology
chemical_list: D022242:Pneumococcal Vaccines; D018074:Vaccines, Conjugate