On behalf of Merck Canada, I would like to thank the committee for the opportunity to present today. My name is Christian Blouin. I am the director of public health policy and government relations for vaccines at Merck. I would like to speak today about the importance of federally funded vaccine programs.
In the last 50 years, immunization has saved more lives in Canada than any other public or medical health intervention. Vaccines have successfully eradicated smallpox, virtually eliminated polio, and substantially reduced the incidence of mumps, measles, rubella, diptheria, pertussis, tetanus, and influenza.
Vaccines have clearly been proven to be a cost-effective tool in Canada to prevent disease, reduce hospitalization and health care costs, and to alleviate suffering so that Canadians are free to live healthy and productive lives.
Under the NIS, the national immunization strategy, Canada has shown bold leadership in addressing the country's patchwork system of immunization funding and in promoting the adoption of new vaccines. Launched in 2003, the national immunization strategy has had tremendous success in achieving equitable access to newly recommended vaccines in Canada. The NIS has contributed to the inclusion of five new vaccines under the publicly funded immunization programs from coast to coast. As a result, twice as many Canadian children were protected against vaccine-preventable disease in 2006 compared with 2003.
We believe that Canada can build on this incredible success. This committee also has a history of supporting federally funded immunization programs. In its December 2006 report, this committee unanimously recommended that the government continue to allocate funds for the national immunization strategy and should establish a dedicated fund for future immunization programs and new vaccines. This committee should be applauded for its bold leadership in this regard.
In 2007 the federal government committed $300 million to support HPV immunization programs across the country through the NIS. With this federal support, HPV vaccination programs have immunized over 450,000 girls in Canada, preventing an estimated 56,000 cases of genital warts, 1,389 diagnoses of cervical cancer, and, more importantly, 617 deaths from cervical cancer.
Unfortunately, NIS program funding expired on March 31, 2010. We therefore are asking this committee to recommend that the Government of Canada continue to encourage the early adoption of new vaccines by reinstating program funding for the national immunization strategy.
This request echos the recommendation of the Canadian Coalition for Immunization Awareness and Promotion, a partnership of 20 national professional health, government, and private sector organizations, such as the Canadian Medical Association, the Canadian Paediatric Society, the Canadian Public Health Association, and many others.
One example of an illness that will benefit from continued vaccine funding is shingles, also known as herpes zoster. It is a disease that can cause debilitating pain, as well as pneumonia, hearing loss, and facial paralysis. Fifty percent of shingles cases in Canada each year occur in people 50 and older. Shingles take a significant toll on our health care system, accounting for over a quarter of a million physician visits, 2,000 hospitalizations, and an estimated $68 million in direct health care costs annually.
In 2008, Canada approved Zostavax, a vaccine indicated for the prevention of shingles in adults 60 and older. The demand for this shingles vaccine in Canada is high, with the majority of older Canadians willing to receive it and the majority of physicians willing to recommend it. However, it is currently excluded from public immunization programs.
We believe that Canada's seniors should have access to leading vaccine technologies that prevent pain and suffering. Shingles is only one example of this type of illness that would benefit from continued program funding.
We therefore respectfully ask this committee to recommend the restoration of NIS funding.
Thank you.