TY - JOUR
T1 - The economic burden of measles in children under five in Uganda
AU - De Broucker, Gatien
AU - Ssebagereka, Anthony
AU - Apolot, Rebecca Racheal
AU - Aloysius, Mutebi
AU - Ekirapa Kiracho, Elizabeth
AU - Patenaude, Bryan
AU - Constenla, Dagna
N1 - Funding Information:
This article is part of the Decade of Vaccine Economics (DOVE) project, funded under a multi-project grant by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Seattle, WA ( OPP112821 ). The project includes empirical assessments of the cost of pneumonia, diarrhea and measles in Uganda and Bangladesh, conducted by the International Vaccine Access Center at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Makerere University School of Public Health, and the International Diarrheal Disease Research Centre, Bangladesh.
Funding Information:
This article is part of the Decade of Vaccine Economics (DOVE) project, funded under a multi-project grant by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Seattle, WA (OPP112821). The project includes empirical assessments of the cost of pneumonia, diarrhea and measles in Uganda and Bangladesh, conducted by the International Vaccine Access Center at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Makerere University School of Public Health, and the International Diarrheal Disease Research Centre, Bangladesh.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2020 The Author(s)
PY - 2020/12/11
Y1 - 2020/12/11
N2 - Background: There is very limited evidence about the economic cost of measles in low-income countries. We estimated the cost of treating measles in Uganda from a societal perspective. Methods: We conducted an incidence-based cost-of-illness study in Uganda. We surveyed the facility staff, recording hospital-related expenditures for measles patients. We interviewed caregivers of children with measles at 48 selected healthcare facilities. We conducted phone interviews with caregivers 7–14 days post-discharge to capture additional out-of-pocket expenses and time costs. Results: From a societal perspective, a hospitalized and an ambulatory episode of measles cost 2018 US$ 60 and $15, respectively. The government spent on average $12 and $5 per hospitalized and ambulatory episode of measles. Including both public and private facilities, caregivers incurred approximately $44 in economic costs, including $23 in out-of-pocket expenses. In 2018, 2614 cases of measles were confirmed, resulting in $135,627 in societal costs, including $59,357 in economic costs to Ugandan households. Conclusion: This cost-of-illness study is the first to use empirical methods to quantify the economic burden of measles in a low-income country. Information related to the cost of treating measles is important for guiding decisions related to changes in measles control and prevention.
AB - Background: There is very limited evidence about the economic cost of measles in low-income countries. We estimated the cost of treating measles in Uganda from a societal perspective. Methods: We conducted an incidence-based cost-of-illness study in Uganda. We surveyed the facility staff, recording hospital-related expenditures for measles patients. We interviewed caregivers of children with measles at 48 selected healthcare facilities. We conducted phone interviews with caregivers 7–14 days post-discharge to capture additional out-of-pocket expenses and time costs. Results: From a societal perspective, a hospitalized and an ambulatory episode of measles cost 2018 US$ 60 and $15, respectively. The government spent on average $12 and $5 per hospitalized and ambulatory episode of measles. Including both public and private facilities, caregivers incurred approximately $44 in economic costs, including $23 in out-of-pocket expenses. In 2018, 2614 cases of measles were confirmed, resulting in $135,627 in societal costs, including $59,357 in economic costs to Ugandan households. Conclusion: This cost-of-illness study is the first to use empirical methods to quantify the economic burden of measles in a low-income country. Information related to the cost of treating measles is important for guiding decisions related to changes in measles control and prevention.
KW - Cost-of-illness
KW - Economic benefit of immunization
KW - Economic burden
KW - Measles
KW - Outbreak
KW - Uganda
KW - Vaccine-preventable disease
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U2 - 10.1016/j.jvacx.2020.100077
DO - 10.1016/j.jvacx.2020.100077
M3 - Article
C2 - 33073228
AN - SCOPUS:85092172267
SN - 2590-1362
VL - 6
JO - Vaccine: X
JF - Vaccine: X
M1 - 100077
ER -