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Why map the cost of asthma?
There are a number of reasons that we developed a map
showing the cost of asthma as part of the pilot project. The map allows
visualization of the multiple asthma indicators in a single format.
Additionally, it provides information that may have more policy relevance and
impact than maps of asthma rates. We foresee that this type of map might be useful as
a forecasting tool (e.g. how will our built environment may impact health costs)
and useful to multiple audiences (e.g. legislators, health
providers, and regulators).
How much does asthma cost?
There are many costs associated with asthma.
These costs can be direct and indirect. For example, direct monetary costs
include the cost of preventative medications and medical treatment.
Indirect costs include time away from work and school, long term physical
damage, and emotional burden to the individual and family. These costs can
depend on the severity of the asthma outcome.
For the purposes of the pilot project, we looked at the
direct cost associated with the four asthma indicators (emergency room visits,
outpatient visits, and symptom and maintenance medication purchases). Each
of these asthma-related "events" has a different monetary cost.
Additionally, each of these events is
distributed differently throughout the county. We wanted to see if the
spending on asthma (per child) was different for locations across the county.
Limitations
The rates of
asthma-related events are calculated from a non-representative sample.
The confidence intervals on these cost
estimates are very large.
Therefore, the absolute numbers shown on the map
are likely to be off, but the variations across the map are likely to be real.
Estimating asthma-related costs
The Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS) is a yearly
national survey used to perform economic analyses of health care. MEPS
determines how much, on average, a medical event, procedure, or item costs.
While the numbers are not specific to Alameda County, we can use them to get an
idea about how much an asthma-related event (e.g. emergency room visit,
medication purchase) costs.
Using the smoothed-surface maps of the four asthma
indicators and asthma hospitalization data from the state, we calculated a rate
for hospitalizations, ER visits, outpatient visits, and medication purchases.
We then calculated the cost for each of these "events" and added them together to
estimate the total cost of asthma for that location. By dividing the total
cost of asthma in a particular location with the total number of children living
in that location, we can calculate the asthma-related cost of asthma per child
throughout Alameda County.
ESTIMATED ASTHMA-RELATED COST AMONG CHILDREN
The map depicts the estimated asthma-related cost per child
living in Alameda County for 2001. The cost of asthma
per child appears highest in the northwest regions of the
county, notably the North Oakland, West Oakland, and
Berkeley areas.
Click here to download this map in PDF
Go to:
Asthma disparities
Asthma maps
and tables
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