Manifesto

Building a
healthier europe

We all have a role to play to ensure European citizens are protected against vaccine-preventable diseases. Our manifesto explains our vision and what needs to happen to make this a reality.
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Did you know?

Vaccines are saving 2-3 million lives globally every year by preventing infectious diseases1
source
Vaccination contributes to health, healthcare systems and society at large by preventing morbidity and mortality
Vaccines can protect everyone: newborn babies, infants, children, adults and older adults2
source
Vaccines offer community-wide protection3
source
Close to 30 diseases today are vaccine-preventable
It costs less than 4,000 Euro to protect a person against the 17 most relevant vaccine-preventable diseases for their entire life4
Vaccines play an important role in the fight against antimicrobial resistance5
source
More than 80% of vaccine doses are produced in Europe by R&D-led pharmaceutical companies6
source

Challenges

Vaccines are a victim of their own success7

The absence of severe diseases, due to effective vaccines and vaccination programmes, is leading to the mis-perception that vaccination is not needed anymore

European communities are at risk

We see an increase of vaccine-preventable diseases in Europe leading to the recurrence of diseases. Despite the goal of eliminating measles by 20208, in the first half of 2018, more than 10,000 cases of measles and 31 deaths were reported in the EU/EEA9

Fake news making the situation worse

Despite the high-quality standards that apply to vaccine production (> 100 quality checks10 per product), robust clinical trials and strict pharmacovigilance, vaccine safety and effectiveness are repeatedly challenged

Many vaccines are undervalued and underutilised

Less than 0.5% of health budgets in many European countries are spent on vaccination11, 12

The sustainability of vaccine supply is being challenged

Only a few manufacturers can meet the high-quality standards and handle the high-risk vaccine production processes and development costs. This makes short-term or unexpected changes in vaccine demand difficult to respond to. Finding solutions to this problem requires a concerted effort by all key stakeholders
VISION 01

Health for all

Life course vaccinations protect everyone, from newborns to senior citizens

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Health for all image
VISION 02

European excellence

Europe is at the heart of vaccine R&D and production

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European excellence image
VISION 03

Stronger together

Maintaining a healthy vaccine demand and supply ecosystem

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Stronger together image

Conclusion

EU leaders have a critical role to play by building on the 2017-2019 momentum on vaccination and supporting the implementation of the goals laid out in the Council Recommendation in the EU Member States. Vaccines Europe welcomes the EU vaccination initiatives and encourages public authorities together with all stakeholders to implement them. This will ensure vaccination remains the cornerstone of a successful prevention policy in Europe, which can protect all European citizens against vaccine-preventable diseases.
Sources:
1. WHO (2018). 10 Facts on Immunisation . Available here (Accessed: 21st September2018)
2. Bonanni, P; Sacco, C; Donato, R; Capei, R (2014). Lifelong vaccination as a key disease-prevention strategy. Clinical Microbiology and Infection – Vol 20(5): 32-36
3. Oxford Vaccine Group (2018). Herd Immunity: How does it work? Available here (Accessed: 21st September 2018)
4. Ethgen O, Cornier M, Chriv E, et. al. (2016). The cost of vaccination throughout life: A western European overview. Human vaccines & immuno therapeutics Vol 12(8): 2029-37.
5. The Review on AMR (2016). Vaccines and Alternative Approaches: Reducing our Dependence on Antimicrobials. Available here
6. Vaccines Europe (2016). The European Vaccine Industry in Figures. Available here (Accessed: 25th September 2018)
7. ECDC (2012). Communication on immunisation – Building trust. Available here (Accessed: 26th September 2018)
8. WHO (2013). Global Vaccine Action Plan 2011-2020. Available here (Accessed: 26th September 2018) https
9. ECDC (2018). Communicable disease threats report – Week 28, 8-14th July 2018. Available here (Accessed: 28th September 2018)
10. GSK (2016). Vaccine manufacture: it’s complicated. Available here (Accessed: 26th September 2018)
11. Gmeinder M; Morgan D; Mueller M (2017). How much do OECD countries spend on prevention? Paris: OECD Publishing 12. Ethgen, O; Remy, V; Wargo, K (2018). Vaccination budget in Europe: an update. Human vaccines & immunotherapeutics – Vol 14(12), 2911-2915
13. Council of the EU (2018). Council Recommendation on strengthened cooperation against vaccine-preventable diseases. Available here (Accessed: 15th January 2019)
14. European Commission (2018). EU Joint Action on Vaccination. Available here (Accessed: 15th January 2019)
15. European Parliament (2018). EP Resolution on vaccine hesitancy and the drop of vaccination rates in Europe. Available here (Accessed: 15th January 2019)
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