Table 3.
Key inputs used and data sources for COVID-19 vaccine introduction delivery cost estimates in Lao PDR
| Data | Assumption | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Total population |
2021: 7,337,714 2022: 7,442,794 2023: 7,545,792 |
Bureau of Statistics, Lao PDR |
| Number of distribution points |
Provincial/central levels: 26 District levels: 135 |
EPI, Lao PDR |
| Number of service points |
Fixed sites with cold storage equipment: 198 Campaign sites: 1645 for adults and 8813 for children Outreach sites: 5081 |
EPI, Lao PDR |
| Vaccine products | Ad26.COV2.S (recombinant), VAXZEVRIA, COMIRNATY, Vero Cell | EPI, Lao PDR |
| Expected willingness to receive COVID-19 vaccines | 100% | Assumption with agreement with EPI, Lao PDR |
| Vaccine wastage rate | 5% | Assumption with agreement with EPI, Lao PDR |
| Maximum number of redeployable human resources for health | 6807 (including medical students and private sector) | EPI, Lao PDR |
| Robustness adjustment for human resources for healtha | 2.5 min | CVIC default |
| Per diem for healthcare workers for outreach (daily rate) | US$2.56 | Document on MoH regulation |
| Cost of vaccinator training and supervision | US$80,055 | Programme managers of MoH, Lao PDR |
| Cost of personal protective equipment per healthcare worker per day | US$3.66 | Programme managers of MoH, Lao PDR |
| Transportation cost for healthcare workers | US$2.56 per motorcycle per day | Document on MoH regulation, Lao PDR |
| Cost per litre for additional ultra-cold storage | US$8.6 | Programme managers of MoH, Lao PDR |
| Costs per trip for cold-chain logistics and domestic transport from central to regional |
Refrigerated: US$100 Ultra-cold: US$100 |
CVIC default based on global vaccine costing derived from global empirical studies and confirmed by experts in Lao PDR |
| Costs per trip for cold-chain logistics and domestic transport from regional to districts and fixed sites |
Refrigerated: US$50 Ultra-cold: US$50 |
CVIC default based on global vaccine costing derived from global empirical studies and confirmed by experts in Lao PDR |
| Cost per fixed site or team for IT infrastructure per fixed site or team for local data management and monitoring | US$1250 | Expert opinions from the consultation in Lao PDR |
| Cost per site per day for stationery and data charges for telecommunications per site per day | US$3.41 | Expert opinions from the consultation in Lao PDR |
| Cost per site for materials and media costs per site per local demand generation and communications | US$38.29 | Expert opinions from the consultation in Lao PDR |
All costs are in 2021 United States dollars (US$)
CVIC COVID-19 Vaccine Introduction and deployment Costing Tool, EPI Expanded Programme on Immunization, Lao PDR the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, MoH Ministry of Health
aMinutes of healthcare worker time required to vaccinate one dose to be added to (upper variant) or subtracted from (lower variant) the medium variant