Emergency vaccines work. A new study shows they’ve cut deaths from major disease outbreaks by nearly 60% since 2000, according to a press release. Researchers from Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, and Australia’s Burnet Institute looked at 210 outbreaks in 49 poor countries over 23 years. They found that getting vaccines out fast during cholera, Ebola, measles, meningitis, and yellow fever outbreaks saved huge numbers of lives. Yellow fever deaths dropped by 99%. Ebola deaths fell by 76%. Gavi CEO Sania Nishtar says this is the first time anyone has been able to put real numbers on how much emergency vaccines help during deadly outbreaks.
Speed matters when disease hits. Countries that moved fast with vaccines saw massive drops in deaths compared to those that responded slowly or not at all. The 2014 Ebola outbreak in West Africa killed thousands and cost $53 billion because there was no approved vaccine. Later Ebola outbreaks that used emergency vaccines? Deaths dropped by three-quarters.
The money saved is huge too. Emergency vaccination during these 210 outbreaks prevented nearly $32 billion in economic losses by stopping premature deaths and years of disability. The researchers think this number is actually low because it doesn’t count all the other ways big outbreaks hurt economies and societies.
Different diseases responded differently, but all showed real improvements. Measles cases dropped 59% and deaths fell 52%. Cholera and meningitis hit communities with weak healthcare systems, so the gains were smaller but still meaningful. Cholera cases and deaths fell by 28% and 36%. Meningitis cases and deaths dropped by 27% and 28%.
The study proves vaccines are still one of the cheapest, most effective ways to fight disease outbreaks. This matters more as the world faces new threats from emerging diseases. Gavi keeps vaccine stockpiles ready and works with World Health Organization (WHO), United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), and other groups to get shots to remote places when outbreaks happen.
