Events

The APEC Vaccines Task Force periodically hosts webinars and policy dialogues to support APEC economies in their efforts to implement the APEC Action Plan on Vaccination Across the Life-Course. To learn more about previous events, you may view the recordings on this page or click here.

26 September 2023: LIFE-COURSE IMMUNISATION FOR OLDER ADULTS IN ASIA: A HEALTH ECONOMICS CASE

1 September 2023: IFA: A LIFE-COURSE APPROACH TO IMMUNIZATION TO COMBAT HEALTH INEQUITIES

6 August 2023: APEC HIGH-LEVEL MEETING ON HEALTH AND THE ECONOMY VIDEO ADDRESS BY THOMAS TRIOMPHE, EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT OF VACCINES AT SANOFI AND CHAIR OF IFPMA GLOBAL VACCINE POLICY FORUM

 

On 3 August, 2023, the Office of International Affairs for the Health Portfolio Government of Canada presented during the APEC Third Senior Officials Meeting for the Health Working Group in Seattle, Washington, United States.

Vaccine Spotlight Report_A Review of Initiative to Improve Vaccine Acceptance and Uptake in the APEC Region

On 3 August, 2023, the Global Coalition on Aging hosted a luncheon during the APEC Third Senior Officials Meeting for the Health Working Group in Seattle, Washington, United States. During this meeting, Ryan MacFarlane, Director, C&M International, presented on lessons in prevention from adult vaccination strategies.

Agenda_APEC GCOA Healthy Aging Roundtable_Aug 3 2023

On 28 June, Dr. Ryan MacFarlane and Alexa Trost, from Crowell and Moring International, presented on the work from the APEC Vaccines Task Force at the Presidential Symposium of 16th International Federation on Ageing (IFA) Conference in Bangkok.

1. Significant gaps in Life-Course Immunization (LCI) programs persist across economies.
2. There is a need to expand and implement comprehensive, holistic approaches to value of vaccination.
3. Immunization financing must be sustainable and stable.

Read the full meeting summary here: VTF SOM1 2023 Dialogue Summary

To support the objectives of the APEC Action Plan on Vaccination Across the Life-Course, the APEC HWG Vaccines Task Force aims to convene a multi-stakeholder informational webinar to share insights, co-create solutions and align on progressive policy activities that can be collectively advanced. During this session, panelists will discuss the value of vaccination across the life-course and how APEC economies can leverage the Action Plan to strengthen National Immunization Programs. Specifically, panelists will discuss how economies can prioritize access to and uptake of vaccination across the life-course for all individuals through strategies including evidence-based decision-making, measuring the direct and indirect value of adult vaccination, and leveraging pediatric immunization infrastructure to expand adolescent and adult immunization services. This session aligns closely with Pillar 1 of the Action Plan: 'Promote recognition of the value of vaccination and vaccine innovation by policymakers and key decision-makers.' 

Under a life-course approach, vaccination strategies are designed to maximize individuals’ ability to protect themselves from infection and maintain good health over the course of their lives and circumstances. Taking a life-course approach to immunization offers a valuable opportunity to improve health, contribute to a more economically sustainable health system, and promote healthy aging.

By leveling the health risks that different groups face, large-scale life-course vaccination programs are instruments for promoting health equity. There is work to be done to maximize the benefits of vaccination across the entire population in the Asia Pacific region. Individually and within APEC, economies regularly and creatively cooperate internationally to advance shared goals, including improving life-course immunization.

Robust regulatory systems are essential to ensure the safety, quality and efficacy of vaccines, while also ensuring supply security and patient access. This webinar will consider policies to ensure that APEC economies’ regulatory frameworks enable a rapid and robust response to COVID-19, while also advancing long-term regulatory objectives for effective immunization programs.

APEC policymakers face an urgent need to finance rapid and comprehensive vaccination coverage in response to COVID-19, and to sustainably finance vaccination in the years ahead. This webinar will address how to mobilize and deploy financing for COVID-19 response, as well as how to ensure that APEC economies adopt sustainable funding strategies for the long term, thereby advancing the goal of widespread uptake of vaccination across the life-course to protecting the health and wellbeing of all populations.

This policy dialogue aims to be a launching pad for collaboration on life-course immunization. Each session will expose stakeholders to current research, insights, and best practices on how to maximize the economic and public value of vaccination, advance health equity, bolster confidence in vaccination, and foster strategies to ensure sustainable financing for health systems, immunization programs in particular. The ideas generated from this discussion can help chart a course for a strong recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, and ensure a healthier and more prosperous Asia-Pacific region.

Unforeseen health emergencies such as COVID-19 can lead to the disruption of routine immunization services and the diversion of health resources, increasing the risk of spreading other preventable illnesses while containing the immediate crisis. This session will address the recovery strategies for immunization programs after health emergencies such as COVID-19, the role of catch-up vaccination, and the ways that expanding points of access can enhance the resilience of immunization systems.