First Access To Vaccines Index Published

An “Access to Vaccines Index” was released today in the Netherlands that claims to “reveal the first landscape of vaccine company actions to improve immunisation coverage.”

The index “finds a high level of diversity in how vaccine companies are improving access to vaccines for people living in poorer countries. This diversity is generally linked to the size of their portfolios and pipelines,” according to the report website.

The new report was published by the Access to Medicine Foundation, which is known for its Access to Medicines Index ranking companies on their performance.

The new index “analysed companies’ R&D pipelines, identifying nearly 90 vaccine projects for high-priority diseases. This includes dozens of first-ever vaccines, for diseases such as Ebola and a range of deadly bacterial infections,” the release says.

“The Index also finds that companies are taking steps to prevent vaccine shortages and that, when setting prices, most take affordability into account to a degree,” it says. “All companies consider a country’s eligibility for support from Gavi, a public-private partnership that funds vaccine purchases for lower-income countries.”

Another finding was that vaccine companies are working on 89 vaccine R&D projects for 35 diseases, it says. The most attention is given to pneumococcal disease, human papillomavirus and seasonal influenza.