Objectives: This study aims to measure the private demand
for oral cholera vaccines in Hue, Vietnam, an area of relatively
low endemicity of cholera, using the contingent valuation
method.
Methods: Interviews were conducted with either the head of
household or spouse in 800 randomly selected households
with children less than 18 years old. Respondents were asked
whether they would purchase an oral cholera vaccine with
different levels of effectiveness and durations of effectiveness
(both for themselves and for other household members) at a
specified price.
Results: The median respondent willingness to pay for 50%
effective/3-year vaccine was estimated to be approximately
$5, although 17% of the study sample would not pay for a
cholera vaccine. The median economic benefit to a household
of vaccinating all household members against cholera, as
measured by its stated willingness to pay, was estimated to be
$40 for a vaccine with these attributes.
Conclusions: The perceived private economic benefits of a
cholera vaccine were high, but not evenly distributed across
the population. A minority of the people in Hue place no
value on receiving a cholera vaccine.
