Osong Public Health Res Perspect.  2017 Oct;8(5):351-357. 10.24171/j.phrp.2017.8.5.09.

Cost of Tuberculosis Treatment: Evidence from Iran’s Health System

• Bay V
• Tabarsi P
• Rezapour A
• Marzban S
• Zarei E

• KMID: 2395845
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.24171/j.phrp.2017.8.5.09

Abstract

OBJECTIVES
This study aimed to estimate the cost of smear-positive drug-susceptible pulmonary tuberculosis (TB) treatment of the patients in the Azadshahr district, Golestan Province, Iran.
METHODS
In this retrospective study, all new smear positive pulmonary TB patients who had been registered at the district's health network between April, 2013 and December, 2015 and had successfully completed their treatment were entered into the study (45 patients). Treatment costs were estimated from the provider's perspective using an activity-based costing (ABC) method.
RESULTS
The cost of treating a new smear-positive pulmonary TB patient was US dollar (USD) 1,409.00 (Iranian Rial, 39,438,260), which can be divided into direct and indirect costs (USD 1,226.00 [87%] and USD 183.00 [13%], respectively). The highest cost (58.1%) was related to care and management of TB patients (including 46.1% human resources costs and 12% directly-observed treatment, short course implementation) and then respectively related to hospitalization (12.1%), supportive activity centers (11.4%), transportation (6.5%), medicines (5.3%), and laboratory tests and radiography (3.2%).
CONCLUSION
Using disease-specific cost studies can help the healthcare system management to have correct insight into the financial burden created by the disease. This can subsequently be used in prioritization, planning, operational budgeting, economic evaluation of programs, interventions, and ultimately in disease management.

Keyword

public health; tuberculosis; cost analysis

MeSH Terms

Budgets
Cost-Benefit Analysis
Costs and Cost Analysis
Delivery of Health Care
Disease Management
Health Care Costs
Hospitalization
Humans
Iran
Methods
Public Health
Radiography
Retrospective Studies
Transportation
Tuberculosis*
Tuberculosis, Pulmonary