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Is an Ounce of Prevention Worth a Pound of Cure? Comparing Demand for Public Prevention and Treatment Policies

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  • Ryan Bosworth

    (Department of Applied Economics, Utah State University, Logan, UT, ryan.bosworth@gmail.com)

  • Trudy Ann Cameron

    (Department of Economics, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR)

  • J.R. DeShazo

    (Department of Public Policy, School of Public Affairs, University of California, Los Angeles, CA)

Abstract

Background. Public policy can affect the allocation of resources between programs designed to prevent illnesses or injuries and programs designed to treat those who are already sick or injured. Information about preferences for treatment and prevention policies can help policy makers more effectively allocate public health resources among alternative uses. Our objective is to assess preferences for publicly funded health policies designed to prevent or treat major health threats. We use national surveys that employ discrete choice experiment formats. The surveys allow respondents to make trade-offs between policies designed to prevent or treat most major health threats. The surveys were administered to a nationally representative sample of over 3000 respondents. Methods. We estimate a random utility model of preferences for treatment and prevention policies and explore sources of systematic heterogeneity in preferences. Results. We estimate marginal utility associated with avoided deaths to be about twice as high for prevention policies as for treatment policies and find statistically significant heterogeneity with respect to disease type, the group targeted by the policy, and respondent characteristics. Conclusions. Preferences for public health policies vary markedly with policy attributes and with individual characteristics. Benefits measurements for welfare assessments of public health policies should be tailored to the type of health threat and the characteristics of the affected population.

Suggested Citation

  • Ryan Bosworth & Trudy Ann Cameron & J.R. DeShazo, 2010. "Is an Ounce of Prevention Worth a Pound of Cure? Comparing Demand for Public Prevention and Treatment Policies," Medical Decision Making, , vol. 30(4), pages 40-56, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:medema:v:30:y:2010:i:4:p:e40-e56
    DOI: 10.1177/0272989X10371681
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    4. Kochi, Ikuho & Taylor, Laura O., 2011. "Risk Heterogeneity and the Value of Reducing Fatal Risks: Further Market-Based Evidence," Journal of Benefit-Cost Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 2(3), pages 1-28, August.
    5. Mouter, Niek & van Cranenburgh, Sander & van Wee, Bert, 2017. "Do individuals have different preferences as consumer and citizen? The trade-off between travel time and safety," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 106(C), pages 333-349.
    6. Rogers, Abbie A., 2012. "Conservation values and management preferences for the Ningaloo Marine Park: a discrete choice experiment," 2012 Conference (56th), February 7-10, 2012, Fremantle, Australia 124431, Australian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society.
    7. Hannah Christensen & Hareth Al-Janabi & Pierre Levy & Maarten J. Postma & David E. Bloom & Paolo Landa & Oliver Damm & David M. Salisbury & Javier Diez-Domingo & Adrian K. Towse & Paula K. Lorgelly & , 2020. "Economic evaluation of meningococcal vaccines: considerations for the future," The European Journal of Health Economics, Springer;Deutsche Gesellschaft für Gesundheitsökonomie (DGGÖ), vol. 21(2), pages 297-309, March.
    8. Marcella Veronesi & Tim Schloendorn & Astrid Zabel & Stefanie Engel, 2012. "Designing Redd+ Schemes When Forest Users Are Not Forest Landowners: Evidence From A Survey-Based Experiment In Kenya," Working Papers 15/2012, University of Verona, Department of Economics.
    9. Morkbak, Morten Raun & Jensen, Jorgen Dejgaard, 2012. "Do consumers’ preferences change when on vacation? A willingness to pay study on apples and honey," 2012 AAEA/EAAE Food Environment Symposium 123525, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    10. Robert J. Johnston & Kevin J. Boyle & Wiktor (Vic) Adamowicz & Jeff Bennett & Roy Brouwer & Trudy Ann Cameron & W. Michael Hanemann & Nick Hanley & Mandy Ryan & Riccardo Scarpa & Roger Tourangeau & Ch, 2017. "Contemporary Guidance for Stated Preference Studies," Journal of the Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, University of Chicago Press, vol. 4(2), pages 319-405.
    11. Henrik Lindhjem & Ståle Navrud & Nils Axel Braathen & Vincent Biausque, 2011. "Valuing Mortality Risk Reductions from Environmental, Transport, and Health Policies: A Global Meta‐Analysis of Stated Preference Studies," Risk Analysis, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 31(9), pages 1381-1407, September.
    12. Rheinberger, Christoph M. & Herrera-Araujo, Daniel & Hammitt, James K., 2016. "The value of disease prevention vs treatment," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 50(C), pages 247-255.
    13. Hammitt, James K. & Herrera-Araujo, Daniel & Rheinberger, Christoph, 2016. "The Value of Cancer Prevention vs Treatment," TSE Working Papers 16-628, Toulouse School of Economics (TSE).
    14. Veronesi, Marcella & Reutemann, Tim & Zabel, Astrid & Engel, Stefanie, 2015. "Designing REDD+ schemes when forest users are not forest landowners: Evidence from a survey-based experiment in Kenya," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 116(C), pages 46-57.
    15. Gu, Yuanyuan & Lancsar, Emily & Ghijben, Peter & Butler, James RG & Donaldson, Cam, 2015. "Attributes and weights in health care priority setting: A systematic review of what counts and to what extent," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 146(C), pages 41-52.

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