Table 3

Cost per QALY/DALY/HYE by patient/disease characteristics, intervention characteristics, methodological attributes, quality of study, funding of intervention
Variable name
 Categories
 ICER
 χ2, p-valuea


25th percentile
 50th percentile (median)
 75th percentile
Target population
 General population
 $8,798
 $20,449
 $150,496

Specific (targeted high risk group)
 $2,392
 $17,220
 $45,068
 2.446, 0.118
Age group
 0 to 25 years
 $11,586
 $41,195
 $149,581

> 25 years
 $2,370
 $15,927
 $42,801
 8.903, 0.003
Type of intervention
 Medical eg physician consult, pharmaceuticals, vaccinations, diagnostic tests, inpatient visits
 $5,946
 $21,898
 $57,363
 8.247, 0.004

Lifestyle eg advice to alter diet/physical activity
 $1,678
 $10,015
 $24,920
Modality1
 Pharmaceutical
 $11,781
 $26,871
 $53,986

All else (primary/specialist care, vaccination, allied health, community/media/education, inpatient)
 $2,232
 $15,270
 $44,558
 2.787, 0.095
Modality2
 Allied health, community/media/education
 $1,899
 $9,591
 $31,749
 4.609, 0.032

All else
 $5,507
 $20,449
 $57,363
Vaccination
 Vaccination
 $12,625
 $56,408
 $156,400

All else
 $2,642
 $17,827
 $44,711
 4.310, 0.038
Objective of intervention
 Treatment (eg cox2 inhibiters to ameliorate symptoms of osteoarthritis)
 $2,045
 $14,161
 $38,620
 2.275, 0.131

All else (prevention, screening, diagnosis, combination)
 $4,674
 $20,650
 $58,817
Disease stage
 1) Treatments designed to completely avert disease/injury or slow, halt or reverse progression of disease/injury (primary and secondary prevention)
 $2,514
 $17,827
 $43,805
 2.534, 0.111

2) Treatments designed to limit disability after harm has occurred (tertiary prevention)
 $6,048
 $19,310
 $133,284
Ability to reduce own risk of disease/injury
 To some extent (eg heart disease)
 $1,671
 $13,778
 $32,644

No
 $7,679
 $25,747
 $111,031
 14.723, < 0.001
Condition caused by patients' own behaviour
 To some extent (eg liver cirrhosis)
 $1,664
 $13,311
 $25,894

No
 $10,299
 $29,609
 $100,871
 24.001, < 0.001
Year
 Pre-1993b
 $1,698
 $6,259
 $97,213

1993† to 1997c
 $11,367
 $34,820
 $81,629

Post-1997c
 $3,436
 $17,616
 $43,769
 3.177, 0.204
Strength of evidence
 Strong – RCT and/or meta-analysis
 $3,524
 $18,282
 $44,794

Limited – other study design
 $2,356
 $18,039
 $56,608
 0.072, 0.788
Perspective
 Health system
 $2,642
 $17,613
 $46,738

Societal
 $8,122
 $20,165
 $75,116
 1.335, 0.248
Outcome
 Life year
$18,724


QALY/DALY/HYE
$17,827
0.080, 0.777
Discount rate
 < 5%
 $7,981
 $25,747
 $43,761

= 5%
 $2,407
 $15,553
 $54,028
 0.436, 0.509
Downstream costs/savings
 Included
 $1,846
 $13,871
 $40,658

Not
 $6,897
 $21,405
 $59,317
 3.866, 0.049
Q-Comparator
 Appropriate
 $6,437
 $20,891
 $58,318

Not
 $983
 $2,257
 $6,409
 27.392, < 0.001
Q-Costs
 Appropriate (marginal and clear)
 $3,802
 $21,885
 $54,483

Not
 $2,045
 $12,706
 $25,082
 3.554, 0.059
Q-Sensitivity
 Performed
 $3,189
 $18,360
 $51,583

Not
 $1,695
 $10.895
 $30,736
 0.756, 0.385
Q-Overall
 Adequate
 $4,406
 $22,437
 $56,395

Not
 $2,221
 $14,082
 $22,887
 5.111, 0.024
Funding status
 Fully funded
 $5,735
 $20,165
 $53,558

Partially funded
 $1,358
 $9,011
 $35,429
 10.870, 0.004

Not funded
 $6,351
 $20,850
 $97,378
Patients required to contribute to costs
 Yes (eg co-payment for pharmaceuticals)
 $3,789
 $18,724
 $43,769
 0.035, 0.852

No (eg immunisations provided free of charge)
 $7,981
 $15,733
 $110,806

a) Statistical significance was assessed using the median value and the Kruskall-Wallace H test for independent samples, all degrees of freedom were equal to one with the exception of the test for year of publication where df = 2, statistically significant results are highlighted in bold

b) From January 1993, the PBAC required to take into account cost effectiveness when making recommendations for listing.

c) Establishment of the Medical Services Advisory Committee (MSAC) in 1998.

Dalziel et al. Cost Effectiveness and Resource Allocation 2008 6:9   doi:10.1186/1478-7547-6-9
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