HealthDay Reporter
MONDAY, Might 16, 2022 (HealthDay Information) — As america mourns a million deaths from COVID-19, a brand new examine signifies the grim tally might have been worse. Use of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine prevented greater than 110,000 deaths and 690,000 hospitalizations in america in 2021, researchers report.
The vaccine additionally prevented 8.7 million symptomatic instances of an infection and saved greater than $30 billion in well being care prices and greater than $40 billion in misplaced productiveness, the examine authors famous.
“The analyses present that the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine contributed substantial public well being affect within the U.S. in 2021, and had a deep impact on the trajectory of the pandemic,” stated Manuela Di Fusco, of Pfizer’s well being economics and outcomes analysis staff.
The Pfizer vaccine was the primary COVID-19 shot obtainable in america. It was given to almost six in 10 folks nationwide who had been totally vaccinated in 2021, in keeping with the U.S. Facilities for Illness Management and Prevention.
The findings had been revealed on-line Might 15 within the Journal of Medical Economics. All the examine authors acquired funding from Pfizer both as staff, consultants or staff of companies paid by Pfizer.
Regardless of the usage of COVID-19 vaccines, the U.S. loss of life toll in the course of the pandemic neared a million final week.
President Joe Biden ordered U.S. flags flown at half-staff Thursday.
“We should stay vigilant in opposition to this pandemic and do the whole lot we will to avoid wasting as many lives as attainable,” Biden stated.
On this examine, researchers estimated the affect of the Pfizer vaccine utilizing a mannequin, real-world knowledge and scientific trial knowledge.
The mannequin used knowledge on the variety of folks vaccinated, the effectiveness of the vaccine in numerous age teams, and the possibilities of being contaminated, creating signs and being hospitalized.
It additionally included the results of long COVID, the variety of working days doubtless misplaced attributable to short-term sickness and the financial affect of untimely deaths from the illness.
The mannequin didn’t embody the affect of the extra transmissible Omicron variant that grew to become the dominant coronavirus pressure on the finish of the examine interval.
Continued
The vaccine “was estimated to stop tens of millions of COVID-19 symptomatic instances, hundreds of hospitalizations and deaths, and generated billions in societal financial worth within the U.S. in 2021,” Di Fusco stated in a journal information launch.
The findings “spotlight the chance to proceed widespread vaccination uptake to stop COVID-19-related illness and generate societal advantages,” she added.
Various limitations might have resulted within the numbers within the examine being underestimates, in keeping with Di Fusco and colleagues. These embody not factoring within the vaccine’s potential to cut back transmission of the coronavirus, the severity of instances and the general affect of lengthy COVID .
The researchers additionally famous that their findings cannot be utilized to different COVID-19 vaccines or teams of individuals not particularly analyzed within the examine.
Extra info
There’s extra on COVID-19 vaccines on the U.S. Facilities for Illness Management and Prevention.
SOURCE: Journal of Medical Economics, information launch, Might 16, 2022
