Appraising the oil-stock nexus during the COVID-19 pandemic shock: a panel threshold analysis.

We examine the oil-stock nexus in 24 countries amidst the COVID-19 pandemic and test for threshold effects on oil prices using Hansen (1999) panel dynamic threshold model and recent extensions of Kremer et al. (2013) and Seo and Shin (2016). We find evidence of nonlinearities and threshold effects in oil prices. As an addition to literature, our estimated model shows that stock market prices react in a regime-style manner, when the joint effects of oil prices, exchange rate changes, number of reported cases, and the number of death due to COVID-19 pandemic are analyzed. This is in support of the theoretical model of investor sentiment by Barberis et al. (1998). Therefore, we are of the opinion that policymakers, governments, and investors in their business decision-making process should put into consideration and also observe changes in the global reported cases alongside the number of deaths and how oil prices are evolving, as the global economy is further affected by the COVID-19 pandemic shock.

Treatment of coronavirus disease 2019 in Shandong, China: a cost and affordability analysis.

BACKGROUND: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is now a global public threat. Given the pandemic of COVID-19, the economic impact of COVID-19 is essential to add value to the policy-making process. We retrospectively conducted a cost and affordability analysis to determine the medical costs of COVID-19 patients in China, and also assess the factors affecting their costs. METHODS: This analysis was retrospectively conducted in Shandong Provincial Chest Hospital between 24 January and 16 March 2020. The total direct medical expenditures were analyzed by cost factors. We also assessed affordability by comparing the simulated out-of-pocket expenditure of COVID-19 cases relative to the per capita disposable income. Differences between groups were tested by student t test and Mann-Whitney test when appropriate. A multiple logistic regression model was built to determine the risk factors associated with high cost. RESULTS: A total of 70 COVID-19 patients were included in the analysis. The overall mean cost was USD 6827 per treated episode. The highest mean cost was observed in drug acquisition, accounting for 45.1% of the overall cost. Total mean cost was significantly higher in patients with pre-existing diseases compared to those without pre-existing diseases. Pre-existing diseases and the advanced disease severity were strongly associated with higher cost. Around USD 0.49 billion were expected for clinical manage of COVID-19 in China. Among rural households, the proportions of health insurance coverage should be increased to 70% for severe cases, and 80% for critically ill cases to avoid catastrophic health expenditure. CONCLUSIONS: Our data demonstrate that clinical management of COVID-19 patients incurs a great financial burden to national health insurance. The cost for drug acquisition is the major contributor to the medical cost, whereas the risk factors for higher cost are pre-existing diseases and severity of COVID-19. Improvement of insurance coverage will need to address the barriers of rural patients to avoid the occurrence of catastrophic health expenditure.

Population health, economics and ethics in the age of COVID-19.

Are the steps that have been taken to arrest the spread of COVID-19 justifiable? Specifically, are they likely to have improved public health understood according to widely used aggregate population health measures, such as Quality Adjusted Life Years (QALYs) and Disability Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) as much or more than alternatives? This is a reasonable question, since such measures have been promoted extensively in global and national health policy by influential actors, and they have become almost synonymous with quantification of public health. If the steps taken against COVID-19 did not meet this test, then either the measures or the policies must be re-evaluated. There are indications that policies against COVID-19 may have been unbalanced and therefore not optimal. A balanced approach to protecting population health should be proportionate in its effects across distinct health concerns at a moment, across populations over time and across populations over space. These criteria provide a guide to designing and implementing policies that diminish harm from COVID-19 while also providing due attention to other threats to aggregate population health. They should shape future policies in response to this pandemic and others.

Financial Burden of Hospitalization of Children with Coronavirus Disease 2019 under the National Health Insurance Service in Korea.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has resulted in an ongoing pandemic; however, the socioeconomic burden of COVID-19 treatment in the pediatric population remains unclear. Thus, the aim of this study was to determine the hospitalization periods and medical costs among children with COVID-19. In total, 145 billing statements for pediatric patients receiving healthcare services because of COVID-19 from February 1, 2020 to March 31, 2020 were used. The study showed that individual treatment costs for children with COVID-19 are approximately USD 2,192 under the Korean National Health Insurance Service System. This study revealed the differences in cost among age groups, determined by the type of hospital wherein admission occurred, as a trend of increasing age, increasing hospitalization time, and increasing cost was observed. Tailored COVID-19 treatment strategies by age group may lower costs and increase the effectiveness of resource allocation.

The heart failure pandemic: The clinical and economic burden in Greece.

BACKGROUND: The objective of this study was to identify the epidemiological and clinical characteristics of heart failure (HF) patients in Greece as well as the economic burden and the distribution of costs for the management of the disease. METHODS: Eight Greek secondary and tertiary cardiology centres from different cities have participated in a prospective, observational survey, the ESC HF Pilot Survey. 307 patients with HF, 177 hospitalised and 130 outpatients, have been recruited and monitored for 12months. Clinical and epidemiological data, along with data on mortality, hospitalisations and health care resources used have been collected. The economic evaluation was conducted from the social security system perspective. RESULTS: The annual mortality rate was 24.3% for the hospitalised patients vs 7.7% for the outpatients (P<0.001) and the annual rehospitalisation rate was 42.9% vs 19.2% respectively (P<0.001). Kaplan-Meier analyses revealed that patients with kidney dysfunction, S3 gallop and higher NYHA class have a significantly worse survival. The mean annual economic burden of the social security system per HF patient was estimated at €4411±4764. About two thirds of this cost is due to in-patient care. CONCLUSIONS: Despite the progress in the management of the disease, about one in four hospitalised patients dies and four in ten are rehospitalised in less than one year. Moreover, the disease imposes a significant economic burden for the social security system and national economy. Their findings suggest that there is still need of more effective drug treatment and efficient disease management programs focused in the reduction of the hospital admissions.