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Determinants of health care costs of HIV-positive patients in the Canary Islands, Spain

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Abstract

The aims of this study were to estimate medical expenditures on human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) treatment and to identify significant associated variables. We performed a retrospective multi-centre study in the Canary Islands using a sample of 569 patients recruited at outpatient visits. The study examined demographic and clinical variables, health-related quality of life (HRQOL), and health care resources. Clinical data was obtained from medical records and patient interviews. Several empirical models for identifying the relationship between health care costs and independent variables were developed. The greatest expense came from pharmaceutical expenditure (82.1% of direct costs), while hospital costs only represented 4.6% of total expenditure. The data showed a statistically significant association between health care costs and the CD4 count of the previous year. HRQOL was also a significant variable. Therefore, CD4 cell count can be used to predict health care costs in patients. Policymakers could use this information to help guide their decisions in allocating limited health care resources to HIV treatments.

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Acknowledgments

The study benefited from the support of the Canary Foundation for Health and Research, (FUNCIS) and from the SEJ2005-8793-CO4-01-04 project (Spanish Ministry of Education and Sciences) and ECO2008-06395-C05-03/ECON project (Spanish Ministry of Sciences and Technology). This work was also supported by an unrestricted educational grant awarded jointly to the Universities Carlos III of Madrid and Pompeu Fabra of Barcelone by The Merck Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Merck Co. Inc., White House Station, New Jersey, USA. We want to express special thanks to the health care providers and other individuals who collaborated in this study: Dr. Gómez Sirvent J., Dr. Alonso Soas M., Dr. Alemán Valls M., Dr. Armas Portela M., Dr. Zarzalejos, Dr. Cárdenes, Dr. Francés Urmeneta A., Dr. Moreno A., Dr. Linares Feria M., Dr. Migueles M., Dr. Hayek M., González Carneiro C., Velásquez Olmos F., Negrín Navarro F., Hernández Bethencourt L., Bacallado Díaz M., Wood Wood M., and Dubrito Pallés A.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Economic Analysis and Finances, University of Castilla la Mancha (UCLM), Toledo, Spain

    Juan Oliva-Moreno

  2. CIBERESP-CIBER in Epidemiology and Public Health, Toledo, Spain

    Juan Oliva-Moreno

  3. CIBERESP-CIBER in Epidemiology and Public Health, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain

    Julio López-Bastida, Pedro Serrano-Aguilar & Lilisbeth Perestelo-Pérez

  4. Evaluation and Planning Service, Canary Islands Health Service (SCS), Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain

    Julio López-Bastida, Pedro Serrano-Aguilar & Lilisbeth Perestelo-Pérez

  5. University Hospital Nuestra Señora de la Candelaria, Canary Islands Health Service, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain

    Julio López-Bastida

  6. Facultad de Ciencias Jurídicas y Sociales de Toledo Análisis Económico y Finanzas Cobertizo de San Pedro Mártir s/n, Toledo, España

    Juan Oliva-Moreno

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  1. Juan Oliva-Moreno
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Correspondence to Juan Oliva-Moreno.

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Oliva-Moreno, J., López-Bastida, J., Serrano-Aguilar, P. et al. Determinants of health care costs of HIV-positive patients in the Canary Islands, Spain. Eur J Health Econ 11, 405–412 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10198-009-0212-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10198-009-0212-z

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