Ethox Seminar - Subgroups and equity in cost-effectiveness analysis
Leah Rand, Research Scientist, Brigham and Women's Hospital; Lecturer in Medicine, Harvard Medical School; Caroline Miles Visiting Scholar, Ethox Centre
Tuesday, 03 June 2025, 10.30am to 12pm
This will be a hybrid seminar in the Richard Doll Building Lecture Theatre (Old Road Campus) or on Zoom.
Abstract
Cost-effectiveness analysis (CEA) aims to evaluate the additional amount of health that an intervention provides to patients and how much more it costs compared to alternatives. While many health systems have used CEA for decades to inform coverage or reimbursement policies, in the US, it is now a contested political issue. One group of critics contend that CEA may be used to identify patient subgroups who are cost-ineffective to treat, resulting in treatment denials and discrimination. Recently, new perspectives on CEA argue that subgroups should be included to identify opportunities to advance health equity. Given these conflicting claims, this paper considers when subgroup analysis is justifiable and how results should be implemented.