Session (CTI)

ISSUE: A societal perspective analysis in cost-effectiveness intends to capture, in a quantitative way, the health and non-health impact of a health intervention compared to alternatives reflecting relevant budgets, other constraints, and policy objectives across sectors. Costs and potential benefits outside of the health sector are increasingly being called out as missing from cost-effectiveness analysis with a potential consequence of not capturing the full value of a health intervention. Less often emphasized are the potential unintended consequences, including the need for equally expanded consideration of opportunity costs for different outcomes and in different sectors, and the difficulty in attributing societal improvements to a specific health intervention. This panel will debate the intended and unintended consequences of a societal perspective cost-effectiveness analysis, appropriate approaches to implementation, and highlight considerations to move the field forward in a balanced way. OVERVIEW: Alex Haines (10 minutes) will introduce the debate by outlining what it means to undertake a societal perspective cost-effectiveness analysis and what the potential intended and unintended consequences are. Marina Richardson (12 minutes) will share the Institute for Clinical and Economic Review’s (ICER) cautious optimism for societal perspective analyses and its view on the role that such a perspective should play. Simone Sutherland (12 minutes) will highlight considerations from a technology developers’ perspective and why intentional consideration of societal domains in the cost-effectiveness analysis outweighs the potential unintended consequences. Mike Paulden (12 minutes) will reflect on both perspectives and share work that aims to ensure the intent of the broader analysis is inclusive of considerations for opportunity cost. The floor will then be open to interactive polling and audience Q&A to discuss priorities for a meaningful and balanced inclusion of societal impacts in cost-effectiveness analysis.