By Robert Preidt HealthDay Reporter
HealthDay Reporter
MONDAY, Could 16, 2022 (HealthDay Information) — As the USA 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 the USA in 2021, researchers report.
The vaccine additionally prevented 8.7 million symptomatic circumstances 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 impression within the U.S. in 2021, and had a deep impact on the trajectory of the pandemic,” mentioned Manuela Di Fusco, of Pfizer’s well being economics and outcomes analysis group.
The Pfizer vaccine was the primary COVID-19 shot accessible in the USA. It was given to almost six in 10 individuals nationwide who have been totally vaccinated in 2021, in accordance with the U.S. Facilities for Illness Management and Prevention.
The findings have been revealed on-line Could 15 within the Journal of Medical Economics. All the examine authors obtained funding from Pfizer both as staff, consultants or staff of companies paid by Pfizer.
Regardless of using COVID-19 vaccines, the U.S. demise toll throughout 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 all the things we will to save lots of as many lives as attainable,” Biden mentioned.
On this examine, researchers estimated the impression of the Pfizer vaccine utilizing a mannequin, real-world knowledge and medical trial knowledge.
The mannequin used knowledge on the variety of individuals vaccinated, the effectiveness of the vaccine in numerous age teams, and the probabilities of being contaminated, growing signs and being hospitalized.
It additionally included the consequences of lengthy COVID, the variety of working days doubtless misplaced resulting from short-term sickness and the financial impression of untimely deaths from the illness.
The mannequin didn’t embody the impression of the extra transmissible Omicron variant that turned the dominant coronavirus pressure on the finish of the examine interval.
Continued
The vaccine “was estimated to forestall hundreds of thousands of COVID-19 symptomatic circumstances, 1000’s of hospitalizations and deaths, and generated billions in societal financial worth within the U.S. in 2021,” Di Fusco mentioned in a journal information launch.
The findings “spotlight the chance to proceed widespread vaccination uptake to forestall COVID-19-related illness and generate societal advantages,” she added.
Plenty of limitations might have resulted within the numbers within the examine being underestimates, in accordance with Di Fusco and colleagues. These embody not factoring within the vaccine’s potential to cut back transmission of the coronavirus, the severity of circumstances and the general impression 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, Could 16, 2022
