title: Cost-benefit analysis of the tsutsugamushi disease prevention program in South Korea.
abstract: The purpose of this research was to evaluate the economic value of the  tsutsugamushi disease prevention program and to suggest whether to abolish or expand this  program. A cost-benefit analysis was conducted to evaluate the economic feasibility of this  prevention program. We collected cost data from 25 public health centers (PHCs) and the medical  insurance data for all tsutsugamushi patients. We estimated the costs and benefits of the  program using a macro-costing method. The estimated total cost was $1.22 million with a  governmental cost of $697,000 and a cost of $521,000 to the PHCs. After the prevention program  was implemented, $581 were salvaged from medical costs, $46 from non-medical costs, and $847  from productivity loss due to the reduced number of patients, with an estimated $6.66 million  per year in total benefits of the program. The ratio of benefit to cost was found to be 5.5,  making the economic value of the program significant. The net benefit should increase if the  tsutsugamushi disease prevention program is continued and the implementation period is expanded  to 10 years.
authors.affiliation: College of Nursing, Research Institute of Nursing Science, Seoul National University, Seoul, South Korea.
authors.forename: Jinhyun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Eunhee
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Hae-Chun
authors.initials: HC
authors.lastname: Rhee
mesh_terms: D003362:Cost-Benefit Analysis; D006078:Government Programs / Q000191:economics*; D017048:Health Care Costs; D006801:Humans; D007349:Insurance, Health, Reimbursement / Q000191:economics; D017059:Models, Econometric; D011314:Preventive Health Services / Q000191:economics*; D056910:Republic of Korea; D012612:Scrub Typhus / Q000191:economics* / Q000517:prevention & control*