Resources Repository
-
ArticlePublication 2008Adjusting VSL for Age
This article addresses the theoretical ambiguity in the effect of age on the value of …
This article addresses the theoretical ambiguity in the effect of age on the value of statistical life (VSL) using a novel, age-dependent fatal risk measure to estimate age-specific hedonic wage regressions. VSL exhibits an inverted-U-shaped relationship with age. In the year 2000 cross section, workers' VSL rises from $3.7 million (ages 18–24) to $9.7 million (ages 35–44) and declines to $3.4 million (ages 55–62). Controlling for birth-year cohort effects yields a peak VSL of $7.8…
Preferences/Values | Benefit-Cost Analysis | Policy/Regulation | Climate/Environment | College | Graduate | Critical Thinking/Analysis -
ArticlePublication 2008Development of an Empirically Calibrated Model of Gastric Cancer in Two High-Risk Countries
This paper presents an empirically calibrated mathematical model of gastric cancer and H. pylori in …
This paper presents an empirically calibrated mathematical model of gastric cancer and H. pylori in China and Colombia to provide qualitative insight into the cost-effectiveness of gastric cancer prevention strategies. Despite studies that have established the relationship between Helicobacter pylori and gastric cancer and H. pylori treatment reducing cancer incidence among individuals without preexisting precancerous lesions, screening for H. pylori is still being debated. The authors synthesized…!--?xml:namespace prefix = "o" ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" /-->
Calibration/Validation | Mathematical Models | Microsimulation | Infectious Diseases | Chronic Disease/Risk | Health/Medicine | Latin America & Caribbean | Asia & Pacific -
ArticlePublication 2007Modeling HPV and Cervical Cancer in the U.S. for Analyses of Screening and Vaccination
This paper discusses a model of human papillomavirus (HPV) and cervical cancer that incorporates uncertainty …
This paper discusses a model of human papillomavirus (HPV) and cervical cancer that incorporates uncertainty about the natural history of disease that was used to provide quantitative insight into U.S. policy choices for cervical cancer prevention. The authors developed a stochastic microsimulation of cervical cancer that distinguishes different HPV types by their incidence, clearance, persistence, and progression. For each set of sampled input parameters, likelihood-based goodness-of-fit (GOF) scores were computed based on comparisons between model-predicted…
Calibration/Validation | Microsimulation | Infectious Diseases | Chronic Disease/Risk | Clinical Care | Health/Medicine | Science/Technology | North America -
ArticlePublication 2007Economic Evaluation of Hepatitis B Vaccination in Low-Income Countries: Cost-Effectiveness Affordability Curves
In the face of uncertainties about both the health and economic consequences of a vaccine …
In the face of uncertainties about both the health and economic consequences of a vaccine program, as well as the availability and magnitude of resources needed to fund the program, cost-effectiveness affordability curves can provide information to decision-makers about the probability that a program will be both cost-effective and affordable: these are distinct but equally relevant considerations in resource-poor settings. This paper describes the application of this method to assess a hepatitis B vaccination program in the…
Cost-Effectiveness Analysis | Costing Methods | Mathematical Models | State-Transition | Microsimulation | Infectious Diseases | Health Systems | Economics/Finance | Health/Medicine | Sub-Saharan Africa -
ArticlePublication 2007Multiparameter Calibration of a Natural History Model of Cervical Cancer
This paper presents a two-step approach to model calibration of a comprehensive natural history model …
This paper presents a two-step approach to model calibration of a comprehensive natural history model of human papillomavirus (HPV) and cervical cancer. Using primary epidemiologic data from a longitudinal study of women in Brazil, a plausible range for each input parameter was identified that would produce model output within the 95% confidence intervals of the data. The authors then performed a simultaneous search over all input parameters to identify parameter sets that produced output consistent…
Calibration/Validation | Mathematical Models | Microsimulation | Infectious Diseases | Chronic Disease/Risk | Health/Medicine | Latin America & Caribbean -
ArticlePublication 2007Cost Effectiveness of Interventions to Reduce Maternal Mortality in Mexico
This article, published in PloS One, uses maternal mortality data from Mexico to examine trends …
This article, published in PloS One, uses maternal mortality data from Mexico to examine trends in the provision of maternal health services and the trajectory towards reaching the Millennium Development Goal 5 (MDG 5). The authors developed a model of the natural history of pregnancy and pregnancy related complications and simulated a cohort of 15-year-old women over their lifetime based on national data. The model produced clinical outcomes, costs, and cost-effectiveness of the current standard…
Cost-Effectiveness Analysis | Costing Methods | Health Outcomes | Maternal/Reproductive Health | Economics/Finance | Health/Medicine | Latin America & Caribbean -
ArticlePublication 2007Mortality-Risk Valuation and Age
This article addresses whether a single value of statistical life (VSL) should be applied to …
This article addresses whether a single value of statistical life (VSL) should be applied to all age groups or whether lower values should be used for the elderly, recognizing that their life expectancies are shorter than those of younger people. Surveys of different age groups' willingness to pay (WTP) for mortality-risk reductions can potentially help resolve this issue. The 36 studies reviewed suggest that the literature is split on whether older people have a lower WTP…
Preferences/Values | Benefit-Cost Analysis | Policy/Regulation | Climate/Environment | College | Graduate | Critical Thinking/Analysis -
ArticlePublication 2002Empirically Calibrated Model of Hepatitis C Virus Infection in the United States
This article presents an epidemiologic model of hepatitis C in the United States. The authors …
This article presents an epidemiologic model of hepatitis C in the United States. The authors used empirical calibration of model parameters to gain insights into uncertainty in the natural history of hepatitis C and to improve future projections. The authors identified model inputs by way of a systematic review. Model simulations were conducted and model predictions were compared with epidemiologic data on infection prevalence and mortality from liver cancer. Goodness-of-fit criteria were used to identify…
Calibration/Validation | Mathematical Models | State-Transition | Infectious Diseases | Chronic Disease/Risk | Health/Medicine | North America -
ArticlePublication 2000Valuing Mortality Risk: Theory and Practice
This article discusses the theoretical foundation and empirical methods for estimating the value of a …
This article discusses the theoretical foundation and empirical methods for estimating the value of a statistical life (VSL). VSL is defined by individuals' preferences for small changes in risk and income, and often used by environmental and other economists to measure the monetary value of reduced mortality risk. The article reviews the dependence of VSL on age, income, baseline mortality risk, and latency.
Preferences/Values | Benefit-Cost Analysis | Policy/Regulation | College | Graduate | Critical Thinking/Analysis