Unit Costs
Use these tools to apply economic costs to each unit of resources consumed or saved as a result of the intervention or treatment.
Criminal justice measures for economic data harmonization in substance use disorder research
Authors: Kathryn E. McCollister, Xuan Yang, Sean M. Murphy, Jared A. Leff, Richard A. Kronmal, Heidi M. Crane, Redonna K. Chandler, Faye S. Taxman, Daniel J. Feaster, Lisa R. Metsch, William E. Cunningham, Frederick L. Altice, and Bruce R. Schackman
This study developed a list of recommended criminal-legal measures to support economic data harmonization opportunities in substance use disorder (SUD) research. Baseline data from six NIDA-funded Seek, Test, Treat and Retain (STTR) intervention studies that enrolled HIV-infected/at-risk individuals with SUDs were assessed.
Four measures that are typically feasible and appropriate for estimating the economic consequences of criminal-legal activity associated with SUD were identified: number of arrests; number of convictions; days of incarceration; and times committing criminal offenses, by type of offense. Additional recommendations are given on how to account for extreme variation in criminal-legal activity and allow for more meaningful comparisons across studies.
Estimating Labor Costs of Interventions Targeting Substance Use Disorder and Other Conditions
This labor cost calculator is designed to support microcosting of programs and interventions targeting people with substance use disorders. This tool is designed to link staff positions to nationally representative wage data provided by Occupational Information Network (O*NET). O*NET is an online comprehensive resource on occupations in the United States and includes wage data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) database. This tool allows the analyst to estimate the cost of personnel time across different intervention/program activities. Formatted as a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet, the development of this calculator was supported by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (P30DA040500).
Harmonizing healthcare and other resource measures for evaluating economic costs in substance use disorder research
Authors: Michelle A. Papp, Jared A. Leff, Sean M. Murphy, April Yang, Heidi M. Crane, Lisa R. Metsch, Carlos Del Rio, Daniel J. Feaster, Josiah D. Rich, Bruce R. Schackman, and Kathryn E. McCollister
This study developed a list of recommended healthcare and other resource utilization measures to support economic data harmonization in substance use disorder (SUD) research. Baseline data featuring self-reported measures from three NIDA-funded Seek, Test, Treat and Retain (STTR) intervention studies that enrolled HIV-infected/at-risk individuals with SUDs were assessed.
Measures that are typically feasible and appropriate for informing healthcare sector and societal costs associated with SUD were identified: ED visits; inpatient hospital and residential facility stays; outpatient encounters; days experiencing SUD problems; and participant spending on substances. Additional recommendations are given on how to collect such information to increase the validity of economic estimates.
Monetary Conversion Factors for Economic Evaluations of Substance Use Disorders
Authors: Kathryn E. McCollister, Xuan Yang, Bisma Sayed, Michael T. French, Jared A. Leff, and Bruce R. Schackman
This publication includes a comprehensive list of monetary conversion factors for a wide range of consequences, services, and outcomes. Clinicians, researchers, and policy makers may find these resources valuable for grants and trial design or economic evaluations of interventions to treat substance use disorders. There are more than 60 unique measures featured.
Patient-Centered Economic Outcomes
Authors: Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI)
The guidelines were compiled by researchers at the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Economic Resource Center (PCOR-ERC) who conducted a systematic literature review and scoping review of U.S. studies that included recommended approaches and commonly used practices for conducting a cost analysis. The reports summarize four methods used to assign medical costs, such as time-driven activity-based costing (TDABC) and micro-costing, activity-based costing (ABC) systems, administrative data analysis, and gross costing, and break down the classifications and methods for determining whether costs are assigned as direct medical or nonmedical costs, or indirect costs.