Clarifying the Principles of Cost-Effectiveness Analyses
Authors: John B. Wong
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (2009)

Letters21 July 2009Clarifying the Principles of Cost-Effectiveness AnalysesJohn B. Wong, MDJohn B. Wong, MDFrom Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, MA 02111.Search for more papers by this authorAuthor, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/0003-4819-151-2-200907210-00017 SectionsAboutFull TextPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail IN RESPONSE:Cost-effectiveness analysis enables policymakers to maximize outcomes without exceeding available resources by determining either the greatest possible benefit for a given resource or the lowest resource cost for a given benefit. To illustrate, Pletcher and colleagues (1) estimated average annual discounted health care costs of $897.64 billion (Table 2) for 138.6 million men and women age 35 to 85 years at baseline, yielding an average cost of $6477 per treated or untreated person. The next most expensive policy options were treating persons with 10-year coronary heart disease (CHD) risk greater than 15% or adhering to Adult Treatment Panel ...References1. Pletcher MJ, Lazar L, Bibbins-Domingo K, Moran A, Rodondi N, Coxson P, et al. Comparing impact and cost-effectiveness of primary prevention strategies for lipid-lowering. Ann Intern Med. 2009;150:243-54. [PMID: 19221376] LinkGoogle Scholar2. Weinstein MC. High-priced technology can be good value for money [Editorial]. Ann Intern Med. 1999;130:857-8. [PMID: 10366377] LinkGoogle Scholar3. Obama BH. Presidential Inaugural Address. 20 January, 2009. Accessed at www.whitehouse.gov/blog/inaugural-address/ on 12 June 2009. Google Scholar4. Plsek PE, Greenhalgh T. Complexity science: The challenge of complexity in health care. BMJ. 2001;323:625-8. [PMID: 11557716] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar5. Plsek P. Innovative thinking for the improvement of medical systems. Ann Intern Med. 1999;131:438-44. [PMID: 10498561] LinkGoogle Scholar6. Plsek PE, Wilson T. Complexity, leadership, and management in healthcare organisations. BMJ. 2001;323:746-9. [PMID: 11576986] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAuthors: John B. Wong, MDAffiliations: From Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, MA 02111.Disclosures: Dr. Wong is a medical editor for the Foundation for Informed Medical Decision Making. PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement FiguresReferencesRelatedDetailsSee AlsoHigh-Priced Technology Can Be Good Value for Money Milton C. Weinstein Innovative Thinking for the Improvement of Medical Systems Paul Plsek Health Policy and Cost-Effectiveness Analysis: Yes We Can. Yes We Must. John B. Wong , Cynthia Mulrow , and Harold C. Sox Comparing Impact and Cost-Effectiveness of Primary Prevention Strategies for Lipid-Lowering Mark J. Pletcher , Lawrence Lazar , Kirsten Bibbins-Domingo , Andrew Moran , Nicolas Rodondi , Pamela Coxson , James Lightwood , Lawrence Williams , and Lee Goldman Clarifying the Principles of Cost-Effectiveness Analyses Robert C. Burack Metrics 21 July 2009Volume 151, Issue 2 Page: 142 Keywords Adenosine triphosphate Congenital heart disease Health care Health care quality Health economics Public policy Quality adjusted life years Research quality assessment Statins Treatment guidelines ePublished: 21 July 2009 Issue Published: 21 July 2009 Copyright & PermissionsCopyright © 2009 by American College of Physicians. All Rights Reserved.PDF downloadLoading ...