Resources Repository
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ArticlePublication 2022Modeling the Effectiveness of Healthcare Personnel Reactive Testing and Screening for the SARS-Cov-2 Omicron Variant within Nursing Homes
The Omicron variant of SARS-CoV-2 has been hypothesized to exhibit faster clearance (time from peak …
The Omicron variant of SARS-CoV-2 has been hypothesized to exhibit faster clearance (time from peak viral concentration to clearance of acute infection), may be less detectable by antigen tests (decreased sensitivity), and may be more likely to evade immunity conferred by past infection or vaccination) compared to prior variants. This calls for a reassessment of strategies to prevent its spread, especially in vulnerable settings like nursing homes. Using a model that tracks viral shedding patterns,…
Test Performance | North America | Infectious Diseases | Mathematical Models | Health/Medicine -
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…
State-Transition | North America | Infectious Diseases | Mathematical Models | Benefit-Cost Analysis | Policy/Regulation | 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…
Cost-Effectiveness Analysis | North America | Infectious Diseases | Priority Setting/Ethics | Benefit-Cost Analysis | Policy/Regulation | Economics/Finance | Health/Medicine | Global -
ArticlePublication 2022Early HPV Natural History Transitions
Microsimulation models used to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of novel cervical cancer screening technologies rely on …
Microsimulation models used to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of novel cervical cancer screening technologies rely on accurate transition risks for human papillomavirus (HPV) infection, persistence (or absence of HPV clearance), progression to precancerous lesions, and invasion. To inform the refinement of such models, we compared the early natural history of HPV types using prospective data from immunocompetent women in the Guanacaste Natural History Study, the ASCUS-LSIL Triage Study, and the Costa Rica HPV Vaccine Trial. We…
Cost-Effectiveness Analysis | North America | Infectious Diseases | Mathematical Models | Microsimulation | Latin America & Caribbean -
EditorialPublication 2020Waiting for Certainty on COVID-19 Antibody Tests — At What Cost?
This perspective anticipates the availability of serologic antibody testing and considers its potential usefulness in mitigation …
This perspective anticipates the availability of serologic antibody testing and considers its potential usefulness in mitigation policy to reduce COVID-19 transmission. For example: Could we screen for serologic antibodies as a proxy for possible immunity and identify people who could return to the workplace with less severe mitigation measures? The authors acknowledge the uncertainties raised by many policy actors, including the WHO, such as, "Do antibodies confer immunity and, if so, for how long? How accurate is…
Test Performance | North America | Infectious Diseases | Probability/Bayes | Technology Assessment | Health Systems | Policy/Regulation | Government/Law | Health/Medicine | Global -
ArticlePublication 2018Should We Treat Acute Hepatitis C? A Decision and Cost-Effectiveness Analysis
This study examines the potential benefits of treating acute hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection compared …
This study examines the potential benefits of treating acute hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection compared to deferring treatment until the chronic phase, utilizing a microsimulation model. By projecting long-term outcomes such as quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) and costs, the analysis evaluates the cost-effectiveness of initiating therapy during the acute phase. Results indicate that treating acute HCV increases QALYs by 0.02 and costs by $483 per patient not at risk of transmitting HCV, yielding an incremental…
Cost-Effectiveness Analysis | North America | Infectious Diseases | Microsimulation | Decision Analysis | Chronic Disease/Risk | Health/Medicine -
ArticlePublication 2016Prevention of Hepatitis C by Screening and Treatment in U.S. Prisons
This study assesses the health and economic impact of hepatitis C virus (HCV) screening and …
This study assesses the health and economic impact of hepatitis C virus (HCV) screening and treatment in U.S. prisons on the broader HCV epidemic. Employing an agent-based microsimulation model of HCV transmission and disease progression, data from published literature inform the analysis. The target populations include individuals in U.S. prisons and the general community over a 30-year timeframe, adopting a societal perspective. Interventions encompass risk-based and universal opt-out HCV screening in prisons, followed by treatment…
Cost-Effectiveness Analysis | North America | Infectious Diseases | Microsimulation | Chronic Disease/Risk | Health/Medicine -
ArticlePublication 2015Cost-Effectiveness & Budget Impact of Hepatitis C Virus Treatment with Sofosbuvir & Ledipasvir in the U.S.
This study evaluates the cost-effectiveness and budget impact of sofosbuvir and ledipasvir for treating chronic …
This study evaluates the cost-effectiveness and budget impact of sofosbuvir and ledipasvir for treating chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection compared to the old standard of care (oSOC). Using a microsimulation model based on HCV natural history, data from published literature, and a third-party payer perspective, the analysis considers treatment-naive and treatment-experienced HCV populations in the United States over a lifetime horizon. Sofosbuvir-based therapies are found to add 0.56 quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs) relative to oSOC,…
Cost-Effectiveness Analysis | North America | Infectious Diseases | Microsimulation | Chronic Disease/Risk | Health/Medicine -
ArticlePublication 2015Clinical Role and Cost-Effectiveness of Long-Acting ART
Long-acting antiretroviral therapy (LA-ART) could potentially improve outcomes in particular for those HIV-infected individuals with …
Long-acting antiretroviral therapy (LA-ART) could potentially improve outcomes in particular for those HIV-infected individuals with poor daily ART adherence. In this study the clinical role and cost-effectiveness of 3 long-acting ART strategies (LA-ART for patients with multiple ART failures; second-line LA-ART for those failing first-line therapy; and first-line LA-ART for ART-naive patients) are compared to daily oral ART using a microsimulation model. The findings of this study showed that LA-ART could improve survival of…
Cost-Effectiveness Analysis | North America | Infectious Diseases | Microsimulation | Health/Medicine