International vaccine funding provided to low- and middle-income countries grew from $822 million in 2000 to $3.6 billion in 2014, according to a new study. First author Annie Haakenstad, a doctoral student at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, and coauthors used estimates compiled by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation. The funding increase was driven predominantly by the establishment of Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the governments of the United States and United Kingdom.
The study appeared in the February 2016 issue of Health Affairs.
The researchers conclude that the 2012 Global Vaccine Action Plan, an international initiative with the goal of generating sustainable financing for vaccines and expanding vaccination coverage to all children in low- and middle-income countries by 2020, could be realized. “The continued increases in development assistance for vaccination are encouraging signs,” they write.
Read study: Vaccine Assistance To Low- And Middle-Income Countries Increased To $3.6 Billion In 2014