New meningitis vaccine only cost-effective at low price

10 October 2014 The ideal cost per dose for a new meningitis vaccine ranges from £3 up to a possible £22 only if several vaccine favourable factors all coincide, according to research which has analysed how to maximise the reduction in cases while making a new vaccination programme cost-effective. Bexsero is the first vaccine to broadly protect against meningitis B disease, but research now suggests the Government would need to negotiate a considerable reduction in the £75 list price in order to provide the same value for money as other programmes in the NHS. In March 2014, the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI), the independent expert group that advises UK governments on vaccination, recommended that Bexsero be offered to babies at two, four and 12 months of age as long as the Department of Health can obtain the vaccine at a cost-effective price. Researchers at the Universities of Bristol, Cambridge and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine conducted a modelling study to estimate the potential impact of a vaccine on cases of meningitis and septicaemia and the cost-effectiveness of a range of immunisation programmes. The model took into account a range of factors, including how many cases could be averted, the cost of care, litigation costs, the quality of life for those left with disabilities, and the impact on families. The costs and benefits of vaccination over people's lifetimes were compared to the costs and losses of not introducing it.