📄 Category

health economics

37 papers

Health economics explores the vital intersection where medical care meets financial reality, examining how resources are allocated, costs are managed, and value is determined in healthcare systems. This field goes beyond simple budgeting to investigate how policy decisions and pricing strategies impact patient access and public health outcomes. By analyzing the economic drivers behind medical treatments, researchers aim to create more sustainable and equitable systems for everyone.

On Gist.Science, we process every new preprint in this category directly from medRxiv, ensuring you have immediate access to the freshest research as it emerges. Our team transforms these complex studies into both plain-language overviews for general readers and detailed technical summaries for specialists, bridging the gap between raw data and actionable insight. Below are the latest papers in health economics, curated to help you navigate the evolving landscape of medical finance and policy.

Economic value of resistance-guided gonorrhea treatment: cost-neutrality thresholds for resistance test pricing in the United States

This study uses a stochastic simulation model to demonstrate that resistance-guided gonorrhea treatment in the United States offers significant economic value across multiple dimensions, with cost-neutrality thresholds for diagnostic tests ranging from near zero to $145 depending on resistance prevalence and the inclusion of system-level costs like delayed resistance emergence and avoided drug development.

Nichols, B. E., Wonderly Trainor, B., Hampson, G., Grad, Y. H., Klausner, J. D.2026-04-07📄 health economics

Defining the potential impact and cost-effectiveness of a non-invasive diagnostic for malaria: a modeling study

This modeling study demonstrates that while universal non-invasive diagnostics (NIDs) maximize malaria case detection, a hybrid strategy combining NID screening with confirmatory rapid diagnostic tests offers the optimal balance of improved case finding, reduced antimicrobial overuse, and cost-effectiveness across diverse epidemiological settings.

Hansen, M. A., de Nooy, A., Calarco, S., Tetteh, K. K., Nichols, B. E.2026-04-01📄 health economics

Magnitude and Associated Factors of Out-of-Pocket Healthcare Expenditure among Outpatients Visiting Public Hospitals in Jigjiga Town, Somali Region, Eastern Ethiopia

This study reveals that out-of-pocket healthcare expenditure is highly prevalent among outpatients in Jigjiga, Ethiopia, with nearly 90% of patients incurring costs, and identifies female sex, unmarried status, higher education, and longer travel distances as significant predictors of these expenses.

Ahmed, M. M., Shitaye, D. D., Cheru, A., Weldesenbet, A. B., Negash, B.2026-03-30📄 health economics

Determining context-specific economically feasible age ranges for female HPV catch-up vaccination in LMICs: a model-based health economic assessment

This model-based assessment of 132 low- and middle-income countries demonstrates that expanding female HPV catch-up vaccination up to age 30 is highly impactful and cost-effective for cervical cancer elimination, though its budgetary feasibility varies significantly and relies heavily on sustainable financing and Gavi support.

Wondimu, A., Georges, D., Macacu, A., Wittenauer, R., Fuady, A., Gini, A., Baussano, I., Man, I.2026-03-27📄 health economics

A Smart Investment: The Health, Education, and Economic Returns of Malaria Chemoprevention in School-Aged Children Across Ten High-Burden Countries

This study demonstrates that malaria chemoprevention for school-aged children across ten high-burden sub-Saharan African countries is a highly cost-effective investment, generating substantial societal net benefits through improved health, reduced school absenteeism, and enhanced educational outcomes, with benefit-cost ratios ranging from 3.71 to 39.5.

Snyman, K., Angrist, N., Cohee, L. M., Worrall, E.2026-03-25📄 health economics

Does the Health System Model Shape Prevention? Evidence from 22 OECD Countries (2004-2023)

This study analyzing 22 OECD countries from 2004 to 2023 finds that the share of health expenditure allocated to prevention is largely independent of a healthcare system's structural organization (financing and provision), suggesting that investment in prevention is driven more by external political and strategic factors than by the system's inherent design.

Marraffa, P., Marega, L., Politano, G., Gianino, M. M.2026-03-23📄 health economics

The Economic Burden of KCNT1-Related Disorders in the United States: Insights from Caregiver-Reported and EMR-Derived Data

This study quantifies the substantial economic burden of KCNT1-related disorders in the United States by combining caregiver-reported and electronic medical record data, revealing that annual costs per family range from approximately $355,000 to nearly $800,000 and are driven primarily by hospitalizations and caregiving-related income loss, thereby underscoring the urgent need for targeted therapies and systemic policy support.

Abuhl, A., Bryan, B. A., Wright, M., Rosenberg, A., West, J., Drislane, S.2026-03-17📄 health economics

Cost-effectiveness of end-game strategies against sleeping sickness across the Democratic Republic of Congo

This study models the cost-effectiveness of various end-game strategies in the Democratic Republic of Congo, finding that while front-loaded investments are required to achieve elimination of transmission by 2030 in most health zones, such ambitious efforts would significantly reduce mortality and prove cost-effective compared to the status quo.

Antillon, M., Huang, C.-I., Sutherland, S. A., Crump, R. E., Brown, P. E., Bessel, P. R., Crowley, E. H., Snijders, R., Hope, A., Tirados, I., Dunkley, S., Verle, P., Lebuki, J., Shampa, C., Mwamba Mi (…)2026-03-16📄 health economics

Bayesian Joint Longitudinal-Survival Modeling of Functional Recovery Trajectories and Time to Independent Community Ambulation Following Robotic Exoskeleton-Assisted Stroke Rehabilitation: A Multi-Centre Cohort Study in Canada

This multi-centre Canadian cohort study utilized a Bayesian joint modelling framework to demonstrate that both the current level and the rate of improvement in lower-extremity motor function are independently predictive of achieving independent community ambulation following robotic exoskeleton-assisted stroke rehabilitation, thereby supporting dynamic, trajectory-based treatment planning.

Lim, A., Desai, P.2026-03-16📄 health economics