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The Economic Costs of Childhood Disability: A Literature Review

Author

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  • Ahmed Ramadan Shokry Shahat

    (Quality and Accreditation Directorate, Ministry of Health, Sulaibikhat 13001, Kuwait)

  • Giulia Greco

    (Department of Global Health and Development, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, Keppel Street, London WC1E 7HT, UK)

Abstract

Background: This literature review investigates the economic costs of childhood disability analysing methodologies used and summarizing the burden worldwide comparing developed and developing countries. Methods: Four electronic databases were searched. Studies were categorised according to country, perspective, methods of costing, disability category, and time horizon. Annual costs were converted to 2019 current US dollars then compared to the country’s per capita current health expenditure (CHE) and gross domestic product (GDP). Results: Of 2468 references identified, 20 were included in the review. Annual burden of childhood disability ranged ≈$450–69,500 worldwide. Childhood disability imposes a heavy economic burden on families, health systems, and societies. The reason for the wide range of costs is the variability in perspective, costs included, methods, and disability type. Conclusion: The annual societal costs for one disabled child could be up to the country’s GDP per capita. The burden is heavier on households in developing countries as most of the costs are paid out-of-pocket leading to impoverishment of the whole family. Efforts should be directed to avoid preventable childhood disabilities and to support disabled children and their households to make them more independent and increase their productivity. More studies from developing countries are needed.

Suggested Citation

  • Ahmed Ramadan Shokry Shahat & Giulia Greco, 2021. "The Economic Costs of Childhood Disability: A Literature Review," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(7), pages 1-25, March.
  • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:18:y:2021:i:7:p:3531-:d:525999
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Dávila Quintana, C. Delia & Malo, Miguel A., 2012. "Poverty dynamics and disability: An empirical exercise using the European community household panel," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 41(4), pages 350-359.
    2. Wilson, L.S. & Moskowitz, J.T. & Acree, M. & Heyman, M.B. & Harmatz, P. & Ferrando, S.J. & Folkman, S., 2005. "The economic burden of home care for children with HIV and other chronic illnesses," American Journal of Public Health, American Public Health Association, vol. 95(8), pages 1445-1452.
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    5. Wang, Bin & Chen, Yingyao & Zhang, Jie & Li, Jun & Guo, Yan & Hailey, David, 2008. "A preliminary study into the economic burden of cerebral palsy in China," Health Policy, Elsevier, vol. 87(2), pages 223-234, August.
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    8. Mizunoya, Suguru & Mitra, Sophie & Yamasaki, Izumi, 2018. "Disability and school attendance in 15 low- and middle-income countries," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 104(C), pages 388-403.
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    12. Mariya Melnychuk & Francesca Solmi & Stephen Morris, 2018. "Using compensating variation to measure the costs of child disability in the UK," The European Journal of Health Economics, Springer;Deutsche Gesellschaft für Gesundheitsökonomie (DGGÖ), vol. 19(3), pages 419-433, April.
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    1. Emanuela Resta & Lucia Brunone & Fiora D’Amico & Lorenzo Desideri, 2021. "Evaluating a Low-Cost Technology to Enable People with Intellectual Disability or Psychiatric Disorders to Initiate and Perform Functional Daily Activities," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(18), pages 1-12, September.

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    Keywords

    child; disability; burden; cost;
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