Resources Repository
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ArticlePublication 2021Racial and Ethnic Inequities in the Early Distribution of U.S. COVID-19 Testing Sites and Mortality
In 2020, U.S. COVID-19 testing sites were pivotal not just for diagnosis but also to …
In 2020, U.S. COVID-19 testing sites were pivotal not just for diagnosis but also to provide data that would contribute to understanding transmission. This research explored how these sites were distributed in relation to racial and ethnic demographics and its connection to observed disparities in COVID-19 outcomes. Data from mid-April to late May 2020 revealed that testing sites were not equally distributed among racial groups. Specifically, there was an overrepresentation of testing sites in areas…
North America | Policy/Regulation | Infectious Diseases | Health Outcomes | Test Performance | Social Determinants | Culture/Society | Health/Medicine | Science/Technology -
ArticlePublication 2023Benefits and Costs of COVID-19 Vaccine Mandates
Written mid-pandemic, this article evaluates the direct costs and health benefits of requiring COVID-19 vaccinations …
Written mid-pandemic, this article evaluates the direct costs and health benefits of requiring COVID-19 vaccinations for U.S. federal employees and healthcare and private sector workers. These mandates were controversial and some were halted by litigation. If they had been implemented as intended, the net benefits would depend on the course of the pandemic. If a more transmissible variant (such as Omicron) emerges, the net benefits may be large. If the pandemic instead fades, the benefits…
North America | Policy/Regulation | Infectious Diseases | Mathematical Models | State-Transition | Benefit-Cost Analysis | Business/Industry | Economics/Finance | Government/Law | Health/Medicine -
ArticlePublication 2022COVID-19 Response: The Need for Economic Evaluation
COVID-19-related policies are fraught with trade-offs. Many of these trade-offs involve dimensions that can be …
COVID-19-related policies are fraught with trade-offs. Many of these trade-offs involve dimensions that can be quantitatively weighed using economic evaluation, such as those between health and cost outcomes. Other types of dimensions, such as those involving equity or autonomy, can be harder to quantify but should be considered in a comprehensive health policy decision-making context nonetheless. The authors of this New England Journal of Medicine Perspectives article outline how methods of economic evaluation and decision…
North America | Policy/Regulation | Infectious Diseases | Priority Setting/Ethics | Benefit-Cost Analysis | Cost-Effectiveness Analysis | Economics/Finance | Health/Medicine | Global -
ArticlePublication 2022Emerging Therapies for COVID-19: The Value of Information From More Clinical Trials
The COVID-19 pandemic necessitated time-sensitive policy and implementation decisions regarding new therapies in the face …
The COVID-19 pandemic necessitated time-sensitive policy and implementation decisions regarding new therapies in the face of uncertainty. This study aimed to quantify consequences of approving therapies or pursuing further research. The authors used a cohort state-transition model for hospitalized patients with COVID-19 to estimate quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs) and costs associated with multiple drug regimens and usual care. For each they assessed immediate approval, use only in research, emergency use authorization or reject. They conducted cost-effectiveness…
North America | Policy/Regulation | Infectious Diseases | Value of Information | State-Transition | Benefit-Cost Analysis | Economics/Finance | Europe -
ReportPublication 2021Valuing COVID-19 Mortality and Morbidity Risks
In this report, the researchers develop an approach for valuing COVID-19 mortality and morbidity risk …
In this report, the researchers develop an approach for valuing COVID-19 mortality and morbidity risk reductions that builds on the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Guidelines for Regulatory Impact Analysis. They review the differences between COVID-19 mortality risks and the types of risks that are more commonly studied, and find that the impacts of these differences on the value of mortality risk reductions (the value per statistical life, VSL) are uncertain. They…
North America | Policy/Regulation | Infectious Diseases | Preferences/Values | Benefit-Cost Analysis | Government/Law -
Online LearningVideo, Teaching Resource 2021Reporting on COVID-19 Vaccines at the Intersection of Science and Politics
Journalists play a vital role in communicating to the public about COVID-19 vaccines, and currently …
Journalists play a vital role in communicating to the public about COVID-19 vaccines, and currently under challenging circumstances. The science surrounding COVID-19 is rapidly changing, vaccines have been developed at “warp speed” using a new approach, and misinformation is on the rise. Moreover, current and historical injustices and inequities, as well as heightened political polarization, affect what information is consumed, trusted, and acted upon. This webinar offers an opportunity for members of the media to…
North America | Policy/Regulation | Infectious Diseases | Decision Psychology | Preferences/Values | Social Determinants | Culture/Society | Health/Medicine | Science/Technology -
ArticlePublication 2021National Academies Work Helps Foster an Evidence-Based Information Environment
U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy issued a public advisory on health misinformation, calling it a …
U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy issued a public advisory on health misinformation, calling it a “serious threat to public health” and encouraging all Americans to help slow its spread during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond. To that end, the National Academies have been addressing misinformation in health and science on multiple fronts and are taking steps to help cultivate a fact- and evidence-based information environment. This description was extracted from the article.
North America | Policy/Regulation | Infectious Diseases | Decision Psychology | Preferences/Values | Social Determinants | Culture/Society | Health/Medicine | Science/Technology -
ArticlePublication 2021Individual and Social Determinants of COVID-19 Vaccine Uptake
This article examined the individual, communication and social determinants associated with COVID-19 vaccine uptake using …
This article examined the individual, communication and social determinants associated with COVID-19 vaccine uptake using national survey data collected before vaccines were available in the U.S. Of note, individuals under the federal poverty level and racial and ethnic minorities were oversampled. Outcomes included the likelihood of vaccinating self and dependents (e.g., children). Independent variables included perceptions of risk, exposure to different media for COVID-19 news, political party identification, confidence in scientists and social determinants of…
North America | Policy/Regulation | Infectious Diseases | Health Outcomes | Evidence Synthesis | Social Determinants | Clinical Care | Culture/Society | Health/Medicine | Science/Technology -
ArticlePublication 2020Online Competition between Pro- and Anti-Vaccination Views
Distrust in scientific expertise is dangerous. Opposition to vaccination with a future vaccine against SARS-CoV-2, …
Distrust in scientific expertise is dangerous. Opposition to vaccination with a future vaccine against SARS-CoV-2, the causal agent of COVID-19, for example, could amplify outbreaks as happened for measles in 2019. Homemade remedies and falsehoods are being shared widely on the Internet, as well as dismissals of expert advice. There is a lack of understanding about how this distrust evolves at the system level. Authors provide a map of the contention surrounding vaccines that has…
North America | Policy/Regulation | Infectious Diseases | Decision Psychology | Preferences/Values | Social Determinants | Health Systems | Culture/Society | Government/Law | Health/Medicine | Science/Technology