Department of Community Health Sciences, University of Sherbrooke, Sherbrooke, Canada.
In the province of Quebec, Canada, the pneumococcal 7-valent conjugate vaccine (PCV-7) was licensed in 2001 and a publicly funded program was implemented in 2004, recommending 3 doses for healthy children. An economic analysis was performed both from a health care and societal perspective. Outcomes possibly prevented by PCV-7 and observed in 2006-2007 were compared to expected frequencies based on rates measured before PCV-7 use. Annual program costs were close to $21M for the health system and $23M for society. Approximately 20,000 infections were prevented annually and estimated economic benefits were $5M for the health system and $23M for society, using a 3% per annum discounting rate. The incremental cost-effectiveness ratio was $18,000 per QALY gained for the health system and the program was close to the break-even threshold in a societal perspective.