Process / pipelineeconomic evaluation framework

Cost-Effectiveness Analysis (CEA)

Cost-effectiveness analysis compares the incremental cost per unit of health benefit gained by one intervention relative to a comparator (standard care or best alternative). Developed rigorously in the 1980s by Drummond, Stoddart, and colleagues, CEA is now the standard framework for technology appraisal globally. NICE, HAS, CADTH, and other health technology assessment bodies use CEA to decide which treatments warrant public funding and at what price.

Apply with EconMindSoonVideoSoon

Read the full method

Members only

Sign in with a free account to read this section.

Sign in

Sources

  1. Gold, M. R., Siegel, J. E., Russell, L. B., & Weinstein, M. C. (Eds.). (1996). Cost-Effectiveness in Health and Medicine. New York: Oxford University Press. link
  2. Drummond, M. F., Sculpher, M. J., Claxton, K., Stoddart, G. L., & Torrance, G. W. (2015). Methods for the Economic Evaluation of Health Care Programmes (4th ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press. link
  3. National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE). (2022). Guide to the Methods of Technology Appraisal. London: NICE. link

Related methods

Referenced by

ScholarGateCost-Effectiveness Analysis (Cost-Effectiveness Analysis (CEA)). Retrieved 2026-06-04 from https://scholargate.app/en/health-economics/cost-effectiveness-analysis