A new report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found that in the US, childhood vaccines prevented hundreds of millions of illnesses, tens of millions of hospitalizations, and more than a million deaths among people born between 1994 and 2023, according to the CDC's childhood immunization program launched in 1994. The study also found that vaccines have saved the system billions of dollars. The study "shows the significant impact of vaccines on people's lives and the impressive return on investment in vaccines and immunization services," said Fangjun Zhou, the paper's lead author and a scientist at the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases.
"Making sure that children receive vaccinations on time is one of the best ways to prevent diseases, reduce the burden on the health system, and reduce costs as well." Researchers from the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases examined and quantified the health benefits and economic impact of routine in the United States born between 1994 and last year. Nine vaccines were included in the analysis: diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis, Haemophilus influenza, poliovirus, measles, rubella, hepatitis B, chicken pox, hepatitis A, pneumococcal, and rotavirus vaccines.
The researchers found that among about 117 million children born from 1994 to 2023, routine childhood vaccinations would prevent about 508 million cases of disease during the children's lifetime, 32 million hospitalizations,.