Every Breath Counts’ Cost of Pneumonia Survey

Most frequently caused by bacterial or viral infection, pneumonia is one of the world’s leading causes of death, with the highest incidence of pneumonia amongst adults aged 70 years and older globally. (1) While many etiologies of pneumonia are vaccine preventable, the cost of vaccination can be prohibitive for those most at-risk of morbidity and mortality from infection. Only 154 of 194 member states of the World Health Organization (WHO) have a supply of pneumococcal vaccines despite there being a high return on investment for vaccination against pneumococcal pneumonia. (2,3) Consequently, low-income countries experience the highest burden of disease while having the lowest capacity to treat pneumonia patients, especially those who must rely on out-of-pocket expenses in order to be treated. (4)

Calling for action to implement subsidized vaccination as a critical component of universal health coverage (UHC) alongside treatment and post-illness rehabilitation, the International Federation on Ageing is proud to be a member of the Every Breath Counts Coalition (EBC) and supports their essential research on out-of-pocket costs of pneumonia treatment. Treatment for pneumonia can be both geographically and economically inaccessible for many, including older adults and persons with disabilities. (5,6) To understand the impact of high out-of-pocket treatment costs on individuals and families, EBC is conducting a survey of individuals who have been treated for pneumonia. The survey can be accessed here.

The IFA is particularly concerned with the health equity of older adults, and has called on professional, patient and advocacy organizations, together with all levels of government to: adopt pneumonia mortality reduction targets for adults; expand vaccination campaigns to include vaccination against pneumonia; develop local burden of pneumonia maps with age-disaggregated data; and increase access to pneumonia education and treatment. (7) In an assessment of pneumonia vaccination policy, public health messages, and campaigns for at-risk adult groups and older people across nine European countries the IFA found that none of the countries had published an action plan for communication on pneumococcal vaccination. (8) Responding to this policy gap, the IFA has created the Adult Vaccination Advocacy Toolkit to assist organizations in expanding vaccine uptake.

Health is a fundamental human right for all. The IFA encourages participation in EBC’s survey and to continue to call on health authorities to invest in inclusive pneumonia prevention and treatment initiatives. Together we can advocate for UHC to be achieved by 2030. (6,9)

Social media tiles promoting EBC’s cost of pneumonia survey can be found below, please feel free to tag the IFA in your posts and use the hashtags #UHC2030 and #EveryBreathCounts

Source:

Kyu HH, Vongpradith A, Sirota SB, Novotney A, Troeger CE, Doxey MC, et al. Age–sex differences in the global burden of lower respiratory infections and risk factors, 1990–2019: results from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019. Lancet Infect Dis [Internet]. 2022 [cited 2022 Sep 26];0(0). Available here
Chen C, Cervero Liceras F, Flasche S, Sidharta S, Yoong J, Sundaram N, et al. Effect and cost-effectiveness of pneumococcal conjugate vaccination: a global modelling analysis. Lancet Glob Health. 2019 Jan 1;7(1)58–67. Available here
World Health Organization. Immunization coverage [Internet]. 2022 [cited 2022 Dec 20]. Available here
World Health Organization. Considerations for pneumococcal vaccination in older adults [Internet]. 2021 [cited 2022 Dec 20]. Available here
World Health Organization. Global report on health equity for persons with disabilities. 2022. Available here
HelpAge International. Achieving Universal Health Coverage fit for an ageing world [Internet]. 2022 [cited 2022 Dec 19]. Available here
International Federation on Ageing. IFA Statement on the Impact of Pneumonia on Older Adults [Internet]. 2022 [cited 2022 Dec 20]. Available here
Barratt J, Bouzanis K. Influencing Adult Pneumonia Vaccination Policy [Internet]. Toronto; 2022 May [cited 2022 Sep 27]. Available here
World Health Organization, World Bank. Healthy Systems for Universal Health Coverage: A Joint Vision for Healthy Lives. 2017. 1–28. Available here

Social Media Kit

The IFA has created the following Social Media kit to help organizations for older adults share impactful information to their members.

Post:

As a member of the Every Breath Counts Coalition, the IFA is proud to support research on the out-of-pocket costs of pneumonia treatment. Have you incurred out-of-pocket costs due to pneumonia? You can participate in EBC’s survey here: https://bit.ly/3HXhDNy

#UHC2030 #EveryBreathCounts

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