In order to prevent the possible influenza and COVID-19 epidemic this autumn and winter, influenza vaccines have been pushed from behind the scenes to the front stage. The flu vaccine, which had a lower vaccination rate in previous years, has become particularly tight this year. With the launch of Chengdu Institute of Biological Products, Yuxi Watson Biotechnology, and Beijing Minhai Biotechnology's 23 valent pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine in China, as well as the implementation of free vaccination policies for the elderly in some provinces and cities, and the landing of the GSK recombinant herpes zoster vaccine - Xinanlixi for the elderly, public perception is gradually changing.
Flu vaccination rates fluctuate greatly
According to survey data from the World Health Organization (WHO), seasonal influenza affects approximately 5% to 10% of adults and 20% to 30% of children each year, ultimately resulting in 3 to 5 million severe cases, including 290000 to 650000 deaths. Especially high-risk groups such as the elderly, infants, and patients with chronic underlying diseases have a higher risk of serious illness and death after contracting influenza. Vaccination is a good protective strategy.
According to data, the vaccine market reached 32.589 billion US dollars in 2019, a year-on-year increase of 6.86%. The North American and Western European sectors dominate the vaccine market. The top 5 vaccine manufacturers are GlaxoSmithKline, Merck, Pfizer, and Sanofi Pasteur, which hold over 90% of the overall market share.
In 2019, the foreign market for anti influenza vaccines reached 3.234 billion US dollars, a year-on-year increase of 5.38%. France's Sanofi's Influenza Vaccines account for 65.49%, UK's GlaxoSmithKline's Fluarix and FluLaval account for 24%, Japan's Mitsubishi Tanabe's Influenza Vaccines account for 3.71%, and AstraZeneca's Flumist account for a relatively small proportion. It is worth mentioning that vaccine production is difficult, seasonal influenza vaccines are only used in the same year, low-temperature storage and transportation conditions are strict, and there are few foreign imitations. The overall market and drug varieties are vastly different.
In addition, vaccines are special drugs with characteristics different from chemical drugs and other biological drugs. Both domestically and internationally, the government generally promotes market development through procurement, market access, and other links. The influenza vaccine widely administered to humans belongs to seasonal influenza vaccines. Under the influence of surface antigen drift and antigen conversion of influenza A virus, the World Health Organization is responsible for collecting, predicting, and publishing information on prevalent strains.
The anti influenza vaccine market in China is recovering
In January 2017, the "Thirteenth Five Year Plan for Health and Health" proposed to expand the national immunization program, adjust the types of vaccines in the national immunization program according to the needs of disease prevention and control work, and gradually include safe, effective, and financially affordable vaccines in the national immunization program.
However, over the years, the growth rate of the domestic vaccine market has been relatively slow, and the overall scale is relatively small. Only in special circumstances can it show its importance. For example, in order to prevent influenza and COVID-19 epidemic this autumn and winter, there was a shortage of anti influenza vaccines.
In 2019, the vaccine market for public hospitals in key provinces and cities in China exceeded 300 million yuan, with a year-on-year growth of over 30%. The main varieties are still human rabies vaccine, human papillomavirus vaccine, and pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine, accounting for 55.81%, 20%, and 6.14% respectively, while influenza virus split vaccine, quadrivalent influenza virus split vaccine, and influenza virus subunit vaccine account for 1.5%.
The domestic vaccine market has experienced ups and downs, especially the vaccine incident in Changchun Changsheng in July 2018, which led to a decline in public recognition of vaccines. In the past two years, Pfizer's 13 valent pneumococcal polysaccharide conjugate vaccine Pei'er has been launched, Merck's quadrivalent human papillomavirus vaccine Jiadaxiu and GlaxoSmithKline's bivalent human papillomavirus adsorption vaccine Xiruishi have been approved on the basis of Merck's nine valent human papillomavirus vaccine Jiadaxiu 9, and the expansion of the domestic 23 valent pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine has warmed up the domestic vaccine market.
According to data from MineNet, the vaccine terminal market for public hospitals in key provinces and cities in China reached nearly 400 million yuan in 2019, with a year-on-year growth rate of over 30%. Due to the fact that vaccines are available in the healthcare departments of secondary hospitals, community epidemic prevention systems, and free vaccination, the terminal market of public hospitals is only the tip of the iceberg that has surfaced. According to publicly available data, the domestic vaccine terminal market has exceeded a scale of 30 billion yuan in 2019. In 2020, driven by the dual infection epidemic prevention of influenza and COVID-19, and the GSK recombinant herpes zoster vaccine "Xin'an Lishi", it will reach a new high. However, many hospitals in China now have shortcomings. The recombinant herpes zoster vaccine, human papillomavirus vaccine, and pneumococcal polysaccharide conjugate vaccine are out of stock, and the enthusiasm to vaccinate the second-class self funded vaccine is not high, which still needs to be improved.
The rise of influenza vaccines may reach a new high this year
Influenza vaccines have not been given much attention in China. In 2010, during the outbreak of H1N1 influenza, the total number of influenza vaccine batches issued reached over 50 million. Since then, the public's self funded vaccination has declined, and the free vaccination rate for elderly people in China has not reached 70% of the population, forming a significant gap with the vaccination rate abroad. In addition, after the sudden change in winter temperature, hospitals have become overcrowded.
With the rise of domestic influenza virus vaccines in the past two years, foreign brands such as Fluvax, Agrippal, axigrip, Inflovac, Inflexal, etc. are no longer available for sale in the market. There are 11 domestic influenza virus split vaccines that hold production approvals. Five quadrivalent influenza virus split vaccines have been approved, with Hualan Biotechnology and Jiangsu Jindike Biotechnology approved before 2019. In 2020, three new institutions were approved, including Changchun Institute of Biological Products, Wuhan Institute of Biological Products, and Beijing Kexing Biological Products.
According to data from MineNet, the terminal market for influenza virus vaccines in public hospitals in key provinces and cities in China exceeded 7 million yuan in 2019, a year-on-year increase of nearly 90%. Among them, Hualan Biotechnology's quadrivalent influenza virus split vaccine accounts for over 20%, while Zhongyi Anke Biotechnology's influenza virus subunit vaccine accounts for less than 1%. Influenza virus split vaccines are still the mainstream variety, accounting for over 70% of influenza virus vaccines. It is expected that the influenza virus vaccine in 2020 will reach a new historical high, and the overall market will exceed 1 billion.
Updating epidemic awareness and promoting the progress of the biotechnology industry
Data shows that in the past 20 years, China's influenza virus vaccine market has been characterized by an upward trend. In the year when SARS occurred in China, there was a shortage of supply in the influenza virus vaccine market. The long-term cultivation of the domestic influenza vaccine market was catalyzed by SARS, which accelerated the development process. After the issuance and implementation of the Guidance on Vaccination of influenza Vaccines in China issued by the Ministry of Health, the market for influenza virus vaccines has become very popular. In 2003, the market demand for influenza virus vaccines exceeded the expected amount.
In 2013, monitoring data from the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention showed that in the first week of 2013, influenza like cases in northern provinces of China accounted for 4.7% of outpatient cases, exceeding the peak level of the previous two years; This has also led to the flu vaccine market reaching a high point. The peak of new influenza virus vaccines once again broke the silence of nearly two years in 2019. Data from the public hospital influenza vaccine market shows significant growth, with a growth rate of over 50% in the first half of 2020. With the arrival of autumn and winter, the influenza vaccine market is expected to reach a historical high.
In the past, China did not attach much importance to influenza and did not have awareness of using vaccines for early prevention. In the autumn and winter of this year, under the influence of influenza and COVID-19 epidemic, people's awareness of vaccination has gradually increased, which will further promote
