Study of the Direct Costs of Asthma at a Healthcare Service Provider in Bogotá, Colombia.

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to describe clinical characteristics and direct medical costs associated with disease treatment in Colombia patients with asthma from 1 healthcare provider. METHODS: This was a descriptive study with a retrospective data collection from a healthcare provider's electronic medical records in Colombia. A clinical, demographic, and healthcare resource utilization profile was developed over a 12-month observation period after the identification of eligible patients. To determine the mean cost per patient per year, the total frequencies of resource utilization were added, and the result was multiplied by the unit cost of each of them. RESULTS: A total of 7919 patients were included in the analysis. The mean ± SD cost per patient per year ranged from $189.5 ± $1.900.6 to $240.2 ± $1.903.6 depending on the price guidebook. The total cost had been driven by the medication use (79% of total cost) and by the outpatient visits (20% of total cost). CONCLUSIONS: In the population analyzed, the mean total direct cost per patient per year of asthma was $189.5 and $240.2, depending on the cost source. Direct medical costs were higher in cases classified as severe and in the adult and elderly population. When comparing the sources of resource utilization, it was found that the mean cost per patient obtained from real-life data is lower than the theoretical cost obtained from the bottom-up method with quantification of resources from experts. It is important to consider limitations related to study design and the evolving landscape of asthma treatments.

Budget impact analysis of primary screening with the HPV test and genotyping against conventional cytology in Colombia / Análisis del impacto presupuestal en Colombia de la prueba de HPV con genotipificación comparada con la citología

Introduction: The detection of the human papillomavirus (HPV) through the combination of the HPV test and other techniques such as cytology has impacted the detection and timely treatment of lesions associated with cervical cancer. Objective: To estimate the budgetary impact of the strategy of early detection of HPV with DNA test genotyping with reflex cytology versus conventional cytology in women aged 30 to 65 years attending the cervical cancer screening program at a health benefit managing entity in Colombia. Materials and methods: Using a decision tree and a Markov model, the clinical implications and direct costs of screening, diagnosis, and treatment were estimated in a cohort of women. The analysis considered two screening cycles and their annual costs. The data on the prevalence of clinical results and the costs were taken from the health managing entity. The information on the progression, persistence, and regression of the health states were taken from the ATHENA study. Results: The screening scheme with the HPV test, genotyping, and reflex cytology compared to conventional cytology was cost-saving. The average cost per screening cycle with the HPV test was estimated at COP $ 129,201,363 and with cytology at COP $ 186,309,952, i.e., a saving of COP $ 57,108,589 (30.7%). Conclusion: The implementation of the screening strategy under evaluation suggests prospective savings derived from the early detection of health states associated with the development of cervical cancer.

Introducción. La detección del virus del papiloma humano mediante la combinación de la prueba de HPV y otras técnicas como la citología, ha demostrado su eficacia en el diagnóstico y tratamiento oportuno de lesiones asociadas con el cáncer de cuello uterino. Objetivo. Estimar el impacto presupuestal de la estrategia de detección temprana del HPV mediante la prueba de genotipificación combinada con la citología en comparación con la citología convencional, en mujeres de 30 a 65 años participantes en el programa de tamizaje de cáncer de cuello uterino en una Entidad Administradora del Plan de Beneficios en salud (EAPB) en Colombia. Materiales y métodos. Utilizando un árbol de decisiones y un modelo de Markov, se estimaron las implicaciones clínicas y los costos directos anuales de dos ciclos de tamizaje, diagnóstico y tratamiento, en una cohorte de mujeres. Las prevalencias de los resultados clínicos y los costos se tomaron de la base de datos de una EAPB y la información de la progresión, persistencia y regresión de los estados de salud provinieron del estudio ATHENA. Resultados. El esquema de tamizaje con la prueba de HPV, la genotipificación y la citología resultó en un ahorro de costos comparado con la citología convencional. El costo promedio por ciclo de tamizaje con la prueba de HPV se estimó en COP $129'201.363 y con la citología en COP $186'309.952, es decir, un ahorro de COP $57'108.589 (30,7 %). Conclusión. La implementación de la estrategia de tamizaje evaluada sugiere que habría ahorros derivados de la detección temprana de los estados de salud asociados con el desarrollo de cáncer de cuello uterino.

Inquiry in bioethics and the philosophy of medicine: organ donation, defining death, and fairness in distribution.

This issue of the Journal of Medicine and Philosophy brings together fresh essays addressing three main genres of questions: (1) questions about the nature of bioethical inquiry and the relevance of the humanities to medical practice; (2) questions regarding the ethics of organ donation; (3) questions bearing on the application of fairness to the distribution of medical resources.

Policy Transparency and College Enrollment: Did the Texas Top 10% Law Broaden Access to the Public Flagships?

By guaranteeing college admission to all students who graduate in the top 10% of their high school class, H.B. 588 replaced an opaque de facto practice of admitting nearly all top 10% graduates with a transparent de jure policy that required public institutions to admit all applicants eligible for the guarantee. The transparency of the new admission regime sent a clear message to students attending high schools that previously sent few students to the University of Texas at Austin and Texas A&M University. Using 18 years of administrative data to examine sending patterns, we find a sizeable decrease in the concentration of flagship enrollees originating from select feeder schools and growing shares of enrollees originating from high schools located in rural areas, small towns, and midsize cities, as well as schools with concentrations of poor and minority students. We also find substantial year-to-year persistence in sending behavior once a campus becomes a sending school, and this persistence increased after the top-10% policy was implemented.