New global data on influenza vaccine provision and level of support for immunization policies

The findings of two studies being published this week in peer-reviewed journals look at global vaccination policies and use global vaccination provision data that had not been previously available were released yesterday by the International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers and Associations (IFPMA).

The first study published in Vaccine shows that, despite influenza vaccine provision increasing, levels globally remain low and the rate of growth is slowing. Only 20% countries achieved the study’s conservative threshold which is based on World Health Organization immunization recommendations. Official vaccination recommendations alone do not drive higher coverage; instead public health policies with a direct impact on patients, such as effective communication and reimbursement policies, are associated with higher levels of seasonal influenza vaccination. These factors appeared substantially more important than United Nations development status, which does not appear to correlate directly to coverage levels.