Dictionary
The Dictionary provides concise definitions of health economics terms, arranged alphabetically for quick reference. Use it to understand unfamiliar terminology or confirm the meaning of a specific term.
P
- Probability of Cost-EffectivenessProbability CE, Likelihood of Cost-Effectiveness
- The probability of cost-effectiveness is the model-based probability that an intervention meets a stated net-benefit criterion against specified alternatives at a given willingness-to-pay threshold under the assumed uncertainty distribution.
- Productivity CostForegone-Output Cost, Indirect Work Loss
- The economic value of lost work output from illness or death, estimated using the human capital or friction cost approach.
- Psoriasis EconomicsPsoriatic Disease Economics, Psoriasis Cost of Illness
- The application of health economic evaluation to psoriasis, comparing topical treatment, phototherapy, and biologic therapy across differing disease severities.
- Psychosis EconomicsPsychotic Disorder Economics, First-Episode Psychosis Cost
- The application of health economic evaluation to psychotic disorders, covering antipsychotic medication, psychosocial support, and early intervention programmes.
- Psychotherapy CostTalking-Therapy Cost, Counselling Cost
- The expense of providing talk-based mental health treatment by a trained therapist, varying by therapy type, format, and duration.
- Ptsd EconomicsPost-Traumatic Stress Disorder Economics, PTSD Cost of Illness
- The application of health economic evaluation to post-traumatic stress disorder, comparing trauma-focused psychotherapy, medication, and combination treatment approaches.
- Pulmonary Embolism EconomicsPE Economics, Lung-Clot Cost of Illness
- The application of health economic evaluation to blood clots blocking lung arteries, addressing both acute treatment and longer-term recurrence prevention.
- Purchasing Power AdjustmentPPP Adjustment, Cross-Country Cost Adjustment
- The conversion of cost data across countries using purchasing power parity rather than market exchange rates, to reflect actual local costs.
R
- Radiation EconomicsRadiotherapy Economics, Beam-Therapy Cost
- The application of health economic evaluation to radiation-based cancer treatment, comparing techniques and their combination with surgery, chemotherapy, or immunotherapy.
- Radiation Therapy EconomicsRadiotherapy Cost Analysis, RT Economics
- The application of health economic evaluation to radiation treatment technologies, comparing conventional approaches against newer, more precisely targeted delivery methods.
- Real CostInflation-Adjusted Cost, Constant-Price Cost
- A cost expressed in constant prices after removing the effect of inflation, allowing valid comparison across different time periods.
- Reference CostBenchmark Unit Cost, Standard Costing Value
- A standardised unit cost for a specific healthcare service, published by a health system to promote consistency in costing across providers.
- Related Future CostRelated Downstream Cost, In-Scope Future Spending
- Future medical costs incurred in added years of life gained from treatment, arising from the same condition the original intervention addressed.
- Research and Development CostR&D Cost, R&D Expenditure
- The total expense a manufacturer incurs discovering, testing, and gaining regulatory approval for a treatment, spanning preclinical research through submission.
- Research CostStudy Cost, Trial Development Cost
- The total expected expense of conducting a proposed study, weighed against the expected value of sample information the study would generate.
- Resistance EconomicsAMR Economics, Resistance Cost Analysis
- The application of health economic evaluation to antimicrobial resistance across bacterial, viral, fungal, and parasitic pathogens.
- Resource-Based ValueResource-Cost Value, Input-Based Value
- A payment concept tying reimbursement to actual resources, such as time and skill, required for a service, rather than historical charges.
- Respiratory Infection EconomicsRTI Economics, Respiratory-Infection Cost
- The application of health economic evaluation to respiratory tract infections, spanning common colds to more severe conditions such as pneumonia.
- Robotic Surgery EconomicsRobotic Surgery Cost-Effectiveness, Economics of Robotic Surgery
- The application of health economic evaluation to robotically assisted surgery, weighing substantial equipment and training costs against reduced complications and faster recovery.
S
- Sectoral Cost-EffectivenessSector-Wide Cost-Effectiveness, System-Level Cost-Effectiveness
- An assessment of an intervention's cost-effectiveness across an entire health sector rather than in isolation, often against a common null counterfactual.
- Semi-Fixed CostStep-Fixed Cost, Semi-Fixed Expense
- A cost that stays fixed within a certain range of activity but rises in discrete steps once a threshold is crossed.
- Semi-Variable CostMixed Cost, Semi-Variable Expense
- A cost containing both a fixed and a variable component, such as a utility bill with a base charge plus a per-unit fee.
- Shadow Price of HealthMarginal Value of Health, Health Opportunity Cost
- The implicit value of health gains forgone when a health budget is spent inefficiently, used as a basis for setting a cost-effectiveness threshold.
- Site CostTrial Location Cost, Site Operating Cost
- The expense of operating an individual trial location, including staff time, facility use, and study-related procedures performed there.
- Societal CostSocietal Perspective Cost, Total Social Cost
- The total cost of an intervention from the broadest perspective, covering direct healthcare, direct non-medical, and indirect costs regardless of who bears them.
- Southwest QuadrantSW Quadrant, Less-Costly-Less-Effective Quadrant
- The region of the cost-effectiveness plane where a new intervention is both less costly and less effective than its comparator.
- Specialty DrugSpecialty Medication, High-Cost Drug
- A category of typically high-cost medications treating complex or rare conditions, often requiring special handling and reimbursed at a distinct, higher tier.
- Specialty PharmacySpecialised Pharmacy, High-Cost Drug Pharmacy
- A pharmacy service focused on dispensing and managing high-cost, complex medications requiring specialised handling, education, and monitoring.
- Standard CostingStandard Cost Method, Predetermined Costing
- A costing method that assigns predetermined, expected costs to services based on historical or engineered estimates rather than actual costs incurred.
- Statin EconomicsEconomics of Statins, Statin Cost-Effectiveness
- The application of health economic evaluation to statin medications, typically finding them highly cost-effective given low cost after generic competition.
- Step CostStepped Cost, Lumpy Cost
- A cost that stays constant over a range of activity and then jumps to a new level once a threshold is crossed.
- Step-Down AllocationStep-Down Method, Sequential Cost Allocation
- A method of allocating support department costs to operating departments in sequence, so that once allocated, no further costs return to that department.
- Subgroup Cost-EffectivenessSubgroup CEA, Stratified Cost-Effectiveness
- An estimate of an intervention's ICER calculated for a specific patient subgroup rather than for the overall study population.
- Suicide Prevention EconomicsEconomics of Suicide Prevention, Suicide Prevention Cost-Effectiveness
- The application of health economic evaluation to suicide prevention programmes, weighing implementation cost against the value of preventing loss of life.
- Sunk CostUnrecoverable Cost, Retrospective Cost
- A cost that has already been incurred and cannot be recovered regardless of future decisions.
- Supportive Care EconomicsEconomics of Supportive Care, Supportive Care Cost-Effectiveness
- The application of health economic evaluation to treatments managing cancer treatment side effects, such as nausea and pain, rather than the cancer itself.
- Surge Capacity CostSurge Cost, Capacity Surge Cost
- The expense of maintaining a health system's ability to rapidly expand service capacity in response to a sudden demand increase.
T
- Targeted Therapy EconomicsEconomics of Targeted Therapy, Precision Oncology Costing
- The application of health economic evaluation to cancer treatments acting on a specific molecular target, jointly considering efficacy and the companion diagnostic test.
- Technology-Driven Cost GrowthTechnology Cost Driver, Innovation-Driven Spending
- The portion of rising healthcare expenditure attributable to the development and spread of new medical technologies, rather than population change or inflation.
- Time-Driven Activity-Based CostingTDABC, Time-Driven ABC
- A costing method estimating a service's cost by multiplying the capacity cost rate of resources involved by the time required to complete each activity.
- Top-Down Cost-of-IllnessPrevalence-Based Cost-of-Illness, Aggregate Cost-of-Illness
- A cost-of-illness study estimating disease-specific cost by apportioning a share of national or aggregate expenditure statistics to a particular condition.
- Top-Down CostingMacro-Costing, Top-Level Costing
- A costing approach that starts with aggregate costs and allocates them to services, activities or patients using documented shares and output counts.
- Total CostAggregate Cost, Total Expenditure
- The sum of all costs, fixed and variable, incurred in producing a given level of output.
- Total Cost of CareTCOC, Total Care Cost
- A comprehensive measure of all healthcare spending associated with a defined population over a period, across all settings and providers.
- Traceable CostDirectly Attributable Cost, Assignable Cost
- A cost that can be directly attributed to a particular department, product, or service line without relying on an allocation method.
- Transaction CostTransacting Cost, Exchange Cost
- The cost of carrying out an economic exchange, covering negotiating, monitoring, and enforcing an agreement, beyond the direct price of the good.
- Treatment Administration CostDelivery Cost, Drug Delivery Cost
- The expense of delivering a treatment to a patient, covering clinical staff time, equipment, and facility use, varying by administration route.
- Tumour Board EconomicsTumour Board Cost-Effectiveness, MDT Meeting Economics
- The application of health economic evaluation to multidisciplinary tumour board meetings reviewing complex cancer cases to recommend treatment.
U
- Unavoidable Cost EstimationUnavoidable Cost Assessment, Committed Cost Estimation
- The process of identifying and quantifying costs that would continue even if a specific activity or programme were discontinued.
- Uncontrollable CostNon-Controllable Cost, Non-Discretionary Cost
- A cost that a specific manager or department cannot influence through their own decisions, often set at a higher organisational level.