Resources Repository
-
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…
Infectious Diseases | Preferences/Values | Benefit-Cost Analysis | Policy/Regulation | Government/Law | North America -
ArticlePublication 2020Valuing COVID-19 Mortality Risk
In this article, the author evaluates whether conventional estimates of the value per statistical life …
In this article, the author evaluates whether conventional estimates of the value per statistical life (VSL) in the United States (about $10 million) are appropriate for evaluating policies that affect risk of COVID-19. This estimate may be too large, because: (1) VSL estimates marginal values but COVID-19 risks can be non-marginal; (2) VSL is estimated for the average resident, but COVID-19 mortality is concentrated among the elderly; and (3) the pandemic has caused substantial losses…
Infectious Diseases | Preferences/Values | Benefit-Cost Analysis | Government/Law | Global -
ArticlePublication 2021COVID and the Age–VSL Relationship
In this article, the researchers explore the approach used to value COVID-19 mortality risk reductions …
In this article, the researchers explore the approach used to value COVID-19 mortality risk reductions in analyses of lockdowns and other policies. Many rely on a population-average estimate of the value per statistical life (VSL); others adjust VSL for life expectancy at the age of death. The article explores the implications of theory and empirical studies, which suggest that the relationship between age and VSL is uncertain; these uncertainties in turn may affect whether the…
Infectious Diseases | Preferences/Values | Benefit-Cost Analysis | Government/Law | Health/Medicine | North America -
ArticlePublication 2020Testing for SARS-CoV-2 Antibodies
Antibody testing can determine previous exposure to SARS-CoV-2 virus. Recently, the UK government has made …
Antibody testing can determine previous exposure to SARS-CoV-2 virus. Recently, the UK government has made antibody testing available to anyone wanting it, even if there is no clinical indication. The purpose of this article is to provide guidance for when to consider antibody testing in individuals with and without symptoms suggestive of current or past SARS-CoV-2 infection. Key points made by the authors include: (1) antibody testing is likely to be most useful 2 weeks…
Technology Assessment | Infectious Diseases | Probability/Bayes | Test Performance | Clinical Care | Health/Medicine -
ToolInteractive 2020COVID-19 Antibody Tests: Calculator for Interpreting Test Results
Antibody testing can determine previous exposure to SARS-CoV-2 virus. This interactive calculator, linked to the article …
Antibody testing can determine previous exposure to SARS-CoV-2 virus. This interactive calculator, linked to the article below* on antibody testing for SARS-CoV-2 virus, allows users to vary the prior probability of infection, the sensitivity of SARS-CoV-2 antibody testing, and the specificity of SARS-CoV-2 antibody testing. Key points made in the article accompanying the interactive include: (1) antibody testing is likely to be most useful 2 weeks after infection, (2) sensitivity and specificity will vary over time and…
Technology Assessment | Infectious Diseases | Probability/Bayes | Test Performance | Clinical Care | Health/Medicine | Science/Technology -
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…
Technology Assessment | Infectious Diseases | Probability/Bayes | Test Performance | Health Systems | Policy/Regulation | Government/Law | Health/Medicine | Global | North America -
ArticlePublication 2020Economic Evaluation of HBV Birth Dose Vaccination
This article, published in Cost Effectiveness and Resource Allocation, examines the cost-effectiveness of a birth …
This article, published in Cost Effectiveness and Resource Allocation, examines the cost-effectiveness of a birth dose of HBV vaccine in a medical setting in Ethiopia. The authors construct a decision analytic model with a Markov process to estimate the costs and effects of a birth dose of HBV vaccine, compared with current practices in Ethiopia. Based on the cost-effectiveness findings, introducing a birth dose of HBV vaccine in Ethiopia would likely be highly cost-effective. Such…
Infectious Diseases | Cost-Effectiveness Analysis | Health Systems | Health/Medicine | Sub-Saharan Africa -
ArticlePublication 2020Financial Burden of HIV and TB
This article, published in BMJ Open, aims to estimate the household economic burden and incidence …
This article, published in BMJ Open, aims to estimate the household economic burden and incidence of catastrophic health expenditures (CHE) incurred as a result of HIV and TB care across income quintiles in Ethiopia. The economic burden of HIV and TB care is estimated looking at direct and indirect costs, whereas the incidence of CHE is determined using direct costs that exceed 10% of the household income threshold. HIV and TB are found to cause…
Infectious Diseases | Cost-Effectiveness Analysis | Health Systems | Health/Medicine | Sub-Saharan Africa -
ToolInteractive, Teaching Resource 2020RAND Critical Care Surge Response Tool
This Excel-based model allows decisionmakers at all levels (i.e., hospitals, health care systems, states, regions) …
This Excel-based model allows decisionmakers at all levels (i.e., hospitals, health care systems, states, regions) to examine the current critical care capacity in the nation’s hospitals and rapidly explore strategies for increasing capacity to provide care for the sickest COVID-19 patients. The tool was developed by the RAND Corporation in response to the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic. Model input parameters to the Excel spreadsheet include baseline number of beds, critical care doctors and nurses, respiratory therapists,…
Infectious Diseases | Priority Setting/Ethics | Mathematical Models | Operations Research | Health/Medicine | North America | Professional | Policy Translation