As society becomes super-aged, there have been calls to expand vaccination programs. As people age, their immune systems weaken, making them more vulnerable to infectious diseases. Consequently, healthcare expenditure increases, and the idea is to mitigate this through vaccination and reduce socioeconomic burdens.
GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), a British pharmaceutical company, held the 2025 Healthy Aging Korea Forum at the British Embassy in Jung-gu, Seoul, on this day, unveiling a report titled 'The Value of Adult Vaccination in Responding to an Aging Society.' The report was published in collaboration with the British Chamber of Commerce in Korea.
The proportion of the population aged 65 and older in Korea is expected to rise from 20.3% this year to 47.7% by 2072. Professor Kim Kwang-il, from the Department of Geriatrics at Bundang Seoul National University Hospital, noted, "As more elderly individuals find it difficult to live independently due to illness, the socioeconomic cost burden will inevitably increase," and added, "Measures for healthy aging are essential, and vaccinating the elderly can prevent infections and reduce mortality rates."
There is also an analysis suggesting that vaccinating the elderly against shingles and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) could reduce medical expenditure. According to the report, when administering the shingles vaccine to 23.33 million individuals aged 50 and older in Korea, the return on investment (ROI) is shown to be 1.52. For the 14.67 million elderly individuals aged 60 and older, the ROI for administering the respiratory syncytial virus vaccine is 1.65.
Professor Lee Han-gil from Ewha Womans University School of Pharmacy stated, "National vaccination programs focus primarily on children, while the elderly can only receive free vaccinations for influenza and pneumococcus." He added, "It is difficult to expect the elderly to voluntarily get vaccinated in the face of extreme poverty among seniors," emphasizing the need to expand vaccination programs for the elderly.
Professor Lee mentioned that vaccinations could help reduce the incidence of severe diseases and hospitalizations, which would benefit health insurance finances. He stated, "In a situation where healthcare expenditure for the elderly is increasing and concerns about health insurance finances are growing, vaccinations can provide collateral for the sustainability of these finances."