Health economics of cardiovascular disease: Defining the research agenda

Abstract

Background: When allocating limited resources, public and private sector leaders in health policy consider both the health and economic value of new measures for cardiovascular disease (CVD) prevention. The ability to develop and prioritize policy measures is hindered by important gaps in health economics data. Methods and Results: The Policy Research Implementation Group (PRIG) of the National Forum for Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention convened a symposium to develop priorities for research on the economics of CVD primary prevention and elimination of CVD disparities. Suggested top opportunities include expanded CVD surveillance, advances in evaluation and economic modeling of primary prevention, and use of behavioral economics to identify new prevention strategies. Enhanced policy, funding, and leadership support are vital to realizing this research agenda. Conclusions: Targeted research on the health and economic value of CVD prevention, especially to eliminate CVD disparities, would bolster the justification for increased investment in cardiovascular health. © 2011 Published by Elsevier Ltd. on behalf of World Heart Federation.