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.

301–350 of 666 terms matching “Cost”

A

AbsenteeismSickness Absence, Work Absence
Time lost from work due to illness, injury, or caregiving responsibilities, resulting in a direct, measurable cost to employers through lost productivity.
Accountable CarePopulation Accountability, Shared-Responsibility Care
A delivery and payment model in which providers accept collective responsibility for cost and quality for a defined patient population.
Accountable Care ModelACO Model, Shared-Savings Model
A delivery model in which providers accept collective responsibility for cost and quality for a defined population, sharing savings or losses.
Accountable Care OrganizationACO, Accountable Care Organisation
A group of providers voluntarily coordinating to take collective responsibility for the cost and quality of care for a defined population.
Activity-Based BudgetingABB, Activity-Driven Budget
A budgeting method that allocates costs according to the specific activities needed to deliver a service, rather than historical spending.
Actuarial AnalysisActuarial Assessment, Insurance Risk Analysis
The application of statistical methods to assess and quantify financial risk, such as the expected future cost of insurance claims.
Actuarial ProjectionActuarial Forecast, Claims Projection
An actuarial projection is a conditional estimate of future benefits, costs, revenues, or liabilities for a defined population or scheme using demographic, economic, and experience-based assumptions.
Actuarial ValueAV, Metal-Tier Coverage Level
A measure representing the percentage of average healthcare costs a health plan is expected to cover for a standard population.
AffordabilityAbility to Pay, Financial Reach
The extent to which a person, household or payer can meet the cost of needed health care within available resources without unacceptable financial hardship or displacement of other priorities.
Affordability CriterionAffordability Standard, Budget Sustainability Criterion
A standard judging whether a new technology's aggregate cost is sustainable within a health system's resources, considered separately from cost-effectiveness.
Age RatingAge-Based Rating, Age-Banded Pricing
A method of setting insurance premiums that varies price by an enrollee's age, reflecting generally higher costs for older groups.
AI Diagnostic ValueValue of AI Diagnostics, AI Diagnostic Assessment
An assessment of the clinical and economic value artificial intelligence diagnostic tools provide, covering accuracy, decision-making impact, and effect on costs.
Ambulatory Surgery CentreASC, Day-Surgery Unit
A specialist facility providing same-day surgical procedures not requiring overnight stay, typically at lower cost than an equivalent hospital procedure.
Annual MaximumYearly Maximum Benefit, Maximum Annual Payout
The highest total amount an insurance plan will pay toward an enrollee's covered costs within a year, beyond which costs fall to them.
Annuity PaymentInstalment Payment, Installment Payment, Amortised Payment
A reimbursement structure paying a treatment's total cost to the manufacturer in a series of instalments over time, rather than as a single upfront sum.
Antibiotic StewardshipPrudent Prescribing, Stewardship Programme
A coordinated set of strategies optimising antibiotic prescribing to improve outcomes, reduce resistance, and cut unnecessary healthcare costs.
Antifungal EconomicsAntifungal Drug Economics, Economics of Antifungals
The application of health economic evaluation to fungal infection medications, comparing older, cheaper agents against newer, often costlier antifungal treatments.
Antihypertensive EconomicsAntihypertensive Drug Economics, Blood-Pressure Medication Economics
The application of health economic evaluation to blood pressure medications, comparing drug classes and combinations on cost and long-term cardiovascular risk reduction.
Antiplatelet EconomicsAntiplatelet Drug Economics, Economics of Antiplatelets
The application of health economic evaluation to antiplatelet medications preventing clot formation, weighing cost and bleeding risk against reduced cardiovascular events.
Asset SaleDistress Sale, Property Sale
The sale of household property to cover healthcare costs, a coping strategy used when other financial resources are insufficient.
Attachment PointRetention Level, Stop-Loss Threshold
The specific threshold at which a stop-loss or reinsurance policy begins covering costs, with the insured responsible for costs below it.
Attributed PatientAttributed Member, Assigned Patient
A patient formally assigned to a specific provider for measuring cost and quality performance under a value-based payment arrangement.
AttributionPatient Assignment, Provider Assignment
The process of formally assigning a patient to a provider for measuring cost and quality performance under a value-based payment arrangement.
Average Analysis MethodAverage Approach, Total-to-Total Analysis
An analytic approach comparing an intervention's total cost to its total effect independently, rather than incrementally against a specific comparator.
AWMSGAll Wales Medicines Strategy Group
The All Wales Medicines Strategy Group, advising the Welsh government on the clinical and cost-effectiveness of newly licensed medicines for NHS Wales.

B

Base Case AnalysisReference-Case Analysis, Central-Estimate Analysis
The primary analysis using a model's central, best-estimate inputs, providing the main cost-effectiveness result behind a funding recommendation.
Benchmark DevelopmentBenchmark Setting, Reference-Standard Development
The process of establishing a reference standard against which actual performance, cost, or outcomes can be measured and compared.
Benefit DesignInsurance Benefit Structure, Plan Coverage Structure
The overall structure of a plan's covered services, cost-sharing, and utilisation management features, determining the actual protection it provides.
Benefit GapDoughnut Hole, Coverage Shortfall
A period or cost category for which an insurance plan provides reduced or no coverage, requiring the enrollee to pay a larger share than usual.
Billed ChargesCharge Master Amount, Gross Charges, Charge
The amount a provider bills for a service, which often bears little relation to actual cost or the amount an insurer ultimately pays.
Borrowing For HealthHealth-Related Borrowing, Medical Debt Borrowing
A coping strategy in which a household takes on debt to cover healthcare costs, an indicator of financial distress.
Brand TierBrand Drug Tier, Branded Formulary Tier
A formulary category for brand-name drugs within a tiered insurance design, typically carrying higher cost-sharing than generic drugs in a lower tier.
Break-Even PointBreakeven Point, Zero-Profit Point
The level of output or activity at which total revenue equals total cost, so an organisation neither gains nor loses money.
Bronze PlanBronze Tier Plan, Bronze Metal Plan
A US Affordable Care Act marketplace plan category with a relatively low actuarial value, around sixty percent, giving lower premiums but higher cost-sharing.
Budget AmendmentBudget Revision, Budget Modification
A formal revision to an approved budget made after the budget cycle has begun, usually to reflect unexpected cost or demand changes.
Budget ConstraintSpending Limit, Fiscal Constraint
The limit on combinations of goods, services or programmes that can be financed from a specified budget at given prices or costs.
Budget Impact Model PharmaManufacturer Budget Impact Model, Pharma BIM
A budget impact model developed by a pharmaceutical manufacturer to project a product's financial consequences, typically submitted alongside a cost-effectiveness analysis.
Budget JustificationFunding Justification, Budget Rationale
A formal explanation supporting a requested level of funding, setting out anticipated costs, expected outcomes, and the case for the resources.
Budget PlanningBudgetary Planning, Fiscal Planning
The process of estimating future costs and revenues and allocating resources accordingly before a budget cycle begins.
Bundled Payment InitiativeBundled Payment Pilot, BPCI
A formal government or payer programme implementing bundled payment arrangements for specific conditions, testing its effect on coordination and cost.
Burden of IllnessIllness Burden, Disease Impact
The total impact of a disease on individuals and society, covering mortality, morbidity, and economic costs, commonly quantified using DALYs.

C

Cancer BurdenCancer Disease Burden, Oncological Burden
The total impact of cancer on individuals and society, covering mortality, morbidity, and healthcare costs, commonly quantified using disability-adjusted life years.

U

Unit CostResource Unit Price, Input Price
The cost of producing or delivering a single unit of a good or service, such as the cost per hospital bed-day.
Unit Cost EstimationUnit Costing, Component Cost Derivation
The process of determining the cost of delivering a single, standardised unit of a healthcare service, such as an inpatient bed-day.
Unrelated Future CostUnrelated Medical Cost, Future Unrelated Cost
Future healthcare costs in added years of life gained from treatment that arise from entirely unrelated health conditions, a particularly unresolved methodological issue.

V

Vaccine Cost-EffectivenessVaccine CEA, Immunisation Cost-Effectiveness
An assessment of a vaccine's cost relative to its health benefits, typically expressed as cost per QALY or DALY averted.
Value For MoneyVfM, Worth the Cost
A general term describing whether a technology's health benefit is judged sufficient to justify its cost, cost-effectiveness analysis's central question.
Variable CostVariable Expense, Volume-Dependent Cost
A cost that changes in direct proportion to output or service volume, such as medical supplies used per patient treated.
VRE EconomicsVancomycin-Resistant Enterococcus Economics, VRE Cost-Effectiveness
The application of health economic evaluation to vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus, a bacterial pathogen resistant to a commonly used antibiotic class.

W

Warfarin EconomicsEconomics of Warfarin, Warfarin Cost-Effectiveness
The application of health economic evaluation to warfarin, accounting for its substantial ongoing monitoring cost against newer anticoagulants requiring none.