Global Use of Hepatitis A Vaccine

The Lancet has published a brief discussion of the potential global application of the hepatitis A vaccine:

More than a decade of accumulated experience with this excellent vaccine provides strong evidence for the potential public-health effect of even limited programmes of childhood hepatitis A vaccination. Thus policymakers in countries with limited resources and rising disease burden associated with hepatitis A should consider creative approaches that target defined populations of children in populations with rising disease incidence. These programmes can be highly effective, cost effective, and more easily financed than nationwide mass vaccination, and can generate experience and political will to guide future policy for hepatitis A vaccination. Ultimately, strategies to lower vaccine prices are needed to further expand the potential applications of this vaccine.