From a societal perspective, postpartum influenza vaccination appears to be a cost-effective method for preventing maternal and infantile influenza. A large database and literature review demonstrated that expected costs were $328.45 for vaccinated women, compared with $341.02 for unvaccinated women. The overall savings ranged from $3.69 million to $14.75 million, depending on the vaccination coverage rate. The researchers noted that postpartum flu vaccinations would be cost-beneficial as long as the annual maternal influenza attack rate were higher than 2.8%, influenza vaccine efficacy were more than 47.0%, or if vaccine acquisition and administration costs per dose were less than $32.78.
Abstract: Obstetrics & Gynecology, February 2012.
