[go: up one dir, main page]
IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/cup/jbcoan/v10y2019is1p15-50_00.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Valuing Mortality Risk Reductions in Global Benefit-Cost Analysis

Author

Listed:
  • Robinson, Lisa A.
  • Hammitt, James K.
  • O’Keeffe, Lucy
Abstract
The estimates used to value mortality risk reductions are a major determinant of the benefits of many public health and environmental policies. These estimates (typically expressed as the value per statistical life, VSL) describe the willingness of those affected by a policy to exchange their own income for the risk reductions they experience. While these values are relatively well studied in high-income countries, less is known about the values held by lower-income populations. We identify 26 studies conducted in the 172 countries considered low- or middle-income in any of the past 20 years; several have significant limitations. Thus there are few or no direct estimates of VSL for most such countries. Instead, analysts typically extrapolate values from wealthier countries, adjusting only for income differences. This extrapolation requires selecting a base value and an income elasticity that summarizes the rate at which VSL changes with income. Because any such approach depends on assumptions of uncertain validity, we recommend that analysts conduct a standardized sensitivity analysis to assess the extent to which their conclusions change depending on these estimates. In the longer term, more research on the value of mortality risk reductions in low- and middle-income countries is essential.

Suggested Citation

  • Robinson, Lisa A. & Hammitt, James K. & O’Keeffe, Lucy, 2019. "Valuing Mortality Risk Reductions in Global Benefit-Cost Analysis," Journal of Benefit-Cost Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 10(S1), pages 15-50, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:cup:jbcoan:v:10:y:2019:i:s1:p:15-50_00
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S219458881800026X/type/journal_article
    File Function: link to article abstract page
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:cup:jbcoan:v:10:y:2019:i:s1:p:15-50_00. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    We have no bibliographic references for this item. You can help adding them by using this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Kirk Stebbing (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.cambridge.org/bca .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.