Abstract
In all industrial countries publicly funded health care systems are confronted with budget constraints. Therefore, priority setting in resource allocation seems inevitable. This paper examines whether personal characteristics could be taken into consideration when allocating health services in Germany, and whether attitudes towards prioritizing health care vary among individuals with different levels of education. Using a conjoint analysis approach, hypothetical patients described in terms of ‘lifestyle’, ‘age’, ‘severity of illness’, ‘type of illness’, ‘improvement in health’, and ‘treatment costs’ were constructed, and the importance weights for these personal characteristics were elicited from 120 members of the general public. Participants were selected according to a sampling guide including educational background, age, chronic illness and gender. Results are reported for groups with different levels of education (low, middle, high) only. The findings show that the patients’ age is the most important criterion for the allocation of health care resources, followed by ‘severity of illness’ and ‘improvement in health’. Preferences vary among participants with different educational backgrounds, which refer to different attitudes towards distributive justice and might represent different socialization experiences.
Highlights
In all industrial countries publicly funded health care systems are confronted with an increasing demand for health care services on the one hand and limited financial resources on the other hand [1].Priority setting in resource allocation seems inevitable [2]
We investigate the relative importance of several criteria for priority setting in health care, including those that are controversially discussed by the general public, such as lifestyle, age, and treatment costs
‘Lifestyle’, ‘age’, ‘severity of illness’, ‘type of illness’, ‘improvement in health’, and ‘treatment costs’ are possible criteria that could be taken into account when setting priorities in health care
Summary
In all industrial countries publicly funded health care systems are confronted with an increasing demand for health care services on the one hand and limited financial resources on the other hand [1].Priority setting in resource allocation seems inevitable [2]. Great Britain, prioritization guidelines have been developed by involving the general public [5] The latter approach led to a greater acceptance of priority setting decisions and is a precondition for legitimacy and fairness [6]. Prioritization according to need or ‘rule of rescue’ [12] implies that health care services should be allocated to those in the greatest medical need, defining need as severity of illness [1]. That is, those who are the most severely ill should be given priority in treatment. An allocation according to efficiency aims at maximizing health care benefits from a given budget [1]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callMore From: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
