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EPRC is a leading institute in Europe for comparative research on public policy, with a particular focus on regional development policies. Spanning 30 European countries, EPRC research programmes have a strong emphasis on applied research and knowledge exchange, including the provision of policy advice to EU institutions and national and sub-national government authorities throughout Europe.

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Adjusting life for quality or disability : stylistic difference or substantial dispute?

Airoldi, Mara and Morton, Alec (2009) Adjusting life for quality or disability : stylistic difference or substantial dispute? Health Economics, 18 (11). 1237–1247. ISSN 1057-9230

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Abstract

This paper focuses on the contrast between describing the benefit of a healthcare intervention as gain in health (QALY-type ideas) or a disability reduction (DALY-type ideas). The background is an apparent convergence in practice of the work conducted under both traditions. In the light of these methodological developments, we contrast a health planner who wants to maximise health and one who wants to minimise disability. To isolate the effect of framing the problem from a health or a disability perspective, we do not use age-weighting in calculating DALY and employ a common discounting methodology and the same set of quality of life weights. We find that interventions will be ranked in a systematically different way. The difference, however, is not determined by the use of a health or a disability perspective but by the use of life expectancy tables to determine the years of life lost. We show that this feature of the DALY method is problematic and we suggest its dismissal in favour of a fixed reference age rendering the use of a health or a disability perspective merely stylistic.

Item type: Article
ID code: 45165
Keywords: QALY, DALY, economic evaluation, healthcare intervention, Economic Theory, Public aspects of medicine, Economics and Econometrics, Health(social science)
Subjects: Social Sciences > Economic Theory
Medicine > Public aspects of medicine
Department: Strathclyde Business School > Management Science
Depositing user: Pure Administrator
Date deposited: 15 Oct 2013 10:49
Last modified: 22 Mar 2017 12:56
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URI: https://strathprints.strath.ac.uk/id/eprint/45165
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