Simplified Pneumococcal Vaccination Schedules for Adults Age 50 and Over Lead to Worse Health

Abstract

Background: In 2014 the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) approved a dose of 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV13) for all adults at age 65 years. This further complicated the pneumococcal vaccination schedule, which was already one of the most complicated schedules. Objective: This study documents simplified schedules that were considered and discarded by the pneumococcal working group before making the most recent recommendation. We examined the marginal cost-effectiveness of several simplified schedules for older adults (age 50+ years) when compared with current recommendations. Our primary outcome was the cost-effectiveness ratio of quality-adjusted life years to cost. Methods: We used a probabilistic model following a cohort of 50 year-olds with separate vaccination coverage and disease incidence data for healthy adults and adults at increased risk of pneumococcal disease. We compared incremental cost-effectiveness ratios from the schedule that was ultimately recommended with each potential simplified vaccination strategy. Results: Most schedules analyzed resulted in several hundred additional deaths. While several possible schedules resulted in cost savings, these cost savings were modest compared to the health costs associated with them. Conclusion: The schedule recommended by the ACIP in 2014, while complex, is the most health promoting compared to the modeled alternative schedules. The incremental cost-effectiveness ratio of the current schedule when compared to simplified alternatives is comparable to other vaccine-related interventions.