terveystaloustiede

Terveystaloustiede, or health economics in Finnish, is the study of how resources are allocated in health care to achieve the best possible health outcomes. It integrates economics, public health, medicine, and statistics to analyze costs and consequences of health interventions, programs, and policies. The aim is to inform decisions under limited budgets and competing priorities, balancing efficiency, effectiveness, and equity.

Key concepts in health economics include economic evaluation approaches such as cost-minimization analysis (when outcomes are equivalent), cost-effectiveness analysis (CEA, costs per unit of health outcome), cost-utility analysis (CUA, costs per quality-adjusted life year or disability-adjusted life year), and cost-benefit analysis (CBA, costs and benefits valued in monetary terms). Results are often summarized by incremental cost-effectiveness ratios (ICERs) or net monetary benefit, evaluated against willingness-to-pay thresholds to determine value for money.

Methods rely on diverse data sources, including randomized trials, observational studies, and health system or registry data, along with modeling techniques like decision trees, Markov models, and microsimulation. Analyses may take a societal, payer, or provider perspective and use varying time horizons with discounting applied to costs and outcomes.

Applications of health economics include informing coverage and reimbursement decisions, prioritizing interventions, and guiding budgeting and policy. Health technology assessment (HTA) bodies evaluate the value of new technologies, medicines, or programs to support resource allocation. In Finland, authorities such as Kela, THL, and Fimea contribute to HTA processes and policy decisions, following national guidelines and international methods.

Challenges include uncertainty, transferability between settings, and ethical considerations related to equity. Transparency and robust reporting are essential, and the field remains interdisciplinary, evolving with new data, methods, and policy needs.