Costs and Benefits in Health Care and Prevention

1. Front Matter

   Pages I-XIX

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2. Introduction

   1. Epidemiology and Economy, and the Appraisal of Human Life: Ethical and Practical Limitations of how to Value Health Benefits

      • U. Laaser

      Pages 1-5

3. Concepts

   1. Cost-Effectiveness Analysis, Cost-Benefit Analysis and the Value of Life in Health Care and Prevention

      • G. M. Ginsberg

      Pages 6-19

   2. Cost-Effectiveness Analysis in Health Care: Opportunities and Challenges to International Comparisons

      • W. B. Stason

      Pages 20-26

   3. The Feasibility of Willingness-To-Pay Measurement in Health Services Research

      • M. S. Thompson, A. B. Cohen

      Pages 27-34

   4. The Willingness-To-Pay Approach: Caveats to Biased Application

      • H.-P. Galler

      Pages 35-40

4. Experience

   1. The Case of a Risk Factor: Hypertension

      1. Attitude and Behaviour of Stuttgart’s Primary Care Physicians with Regard to the Pharmacological and Non-Pharmacological Treatment of Mild Hypertension

         • A. Füller, V. Schumann, U. Laaser

         Pages 41-50

      2. Comparisons of 1977 and 1987 Physicians’ Knowledge Survey — Implications on Cost and Hypertension Management

         • E. J. Rocella

         Pages 51-56

      3. Evaluation of Cost Effectiveness of Physician-Nurse Teams as Compared to Physicians Working alone in Primary Care Practices in Community Control of Hypertension

         • M. Modan, Z. Fuchs, J. B. Rosenfeld

         Pages 57-71

      4. The Ashkelon Hypertension Detection and Control Program Medical and Cost Implications

         • J. R. Viskoper, S. Oren, L. Bregman, J. Mishal, G. M. Ginsberg

         Pages 72-78

      5. The Management of Hypertension: A Clinical Dilemma with Health Policy Implications

         • M. H. Alderman, B. Lamport

         Pages 79-91

   2. The Case of Clinical Disease

      1. Angina Pectoris Prophylaxis: A Model Estimate of Cost and Benefit

         • R. H. Dinkel

         Pages 92-106

      2. Cost Considerations for the Management of End Stage Renal Disease in the United States

         • M. A. Moore

         Pages 107-110

      3. Medical Treatment and its Implications on Costs. An Analysis with Process Data from the German Statutory Health Insurance

         • B. Häussler, K. Jacobs

         Pages 111-118

5. The New Dimension: Quality of Life

   1. Quality of Life: Methodological Key Issues

      • S. Weitzman

      Pages 119-125

   2. Towards the Integrated Measurement of Quality of Life

      • H. Wenzel, U. Laaser

      Pages 126-139

   3. Quality of Life, Clinical Trials, and Cost-Effectiveness Analysis: Conceptual Issues with Hypertension as an Example

      • J. L. Read

      Pages 140-148

6. Comments on the State of the Art

   1. Notes on Economic Evaluation

      • H. F. K. Zöllner

      Pages 149-155

   2. Some Limitations in the Analysis of Costs and Benefits

      • F. W. Schwartz

      Pages 156-157

   3. Research Perspectives for the Future: International Cooperation in Comparing Costs and Benefits of the Best Demonstrated Practice in Health Care and Prevention

      • U. Laaser

      Pages 158-160

One of the main purposes of medical cost-benefit analyses is to define the rational priorities in health care. This book ambitiously undertakes to compare the cost-benefit analyses of three countries: the United States, Germany and Israel. Cardiovascular disease is focused on to provide a model case study, but other areas also provide examples. The contribu- tions consider in particular two recent developments. These are the increase in comprehensive epidemiological data, es- pecially with regards to risk factors, and improved methodo- logy for measuring the quality of life. The contributions stem from clinicians, epidemiologists and health economists who give an overall picture of these complex issues and the prospects for the future.

• Health economy
• Public Health
• care
• cost-benefits-analysis epidemiology
• epidemiology
• health
• health care
• health care research
• health policy
• pharmacology
• prevention
• quality of life

• Sozialmedizin und öffentliches Gesundheitswesen (IDIS), Universität Bielefeld und institut für Dokumentation und Information, Bielefeld, Federal Republic of Germany

  U. Laaser

• National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, National Institute of Health, Bethesda, USA

  E. J. Roccella

• Belinson Medical Center, University of Tel Aviv, Petah Tikva, Israel

  J. B. Rosenfeld

• Abteilung G-K, Boehringer Mannheim GmbH, Mannheim 31, Federal Republic of Germany

  H. Wenzel

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