In Brief
Nearly One Million Lives May Be Saved With One Shot
One of the most fascinating things about public health is the power of a single intervention, especially in developing countries.
Earlier this week, a study showed that dirty water kills more people world-wide than war and violence—and yet, do any of us think about dirty water? No, in developed nations it runs clear.
Now, a charity, GAVI, has negotiated a rate for pneumonia vaccine which, it says, could save as many as 900,000 lives in the next five years (2015).
Nearly one million people. Saved by one shot. That is the power of public health in action.
“Pfizer and GlaxoSmithKline will supply hundreds of millions of doses of their pneumonia vaccines to the world’s poorest countries at heavily discounted prices under a novel agreement announced Tuesday.
“But at least one expert maintains that the prices are still too high.
“The deal was announced by the GAVI Alliance, a nonprofit organization, which estimated the program could save a total of 900,000 lives by 2015. (Emphasis added)
“The vaccines — Pfizer’s Prevnar 13 and GlaxoSmithKline’s Synflorix — prevent pneumococcal disease, which includes pneumonia and meningitis. Pneumococcal disease kills 1.6 million people a year worldwide, including 800,000 children before their fifth birthday, according to GAVI.”
Source: New York Times, March 23, 2010
