Economic Evaluation of Programmes for AIDS and HIV Infection: Methodological Issues

Abstract

AIDS is not only a disease of great social concern; it also has major resource implications. In most of the developed countries governments have been concerned about the costs of treating an increasing number of cases and the costs of mounting major public information campaigns to prevent the spread of the disease. The increased expenditure on treatment has raised questions about the relative priority that should be assigned to interventions for AIDS and HIV infection, when there are many other potential uses of scarce health care resources. The relative value for money of alternative treatment packages has also been a source of debate.