Societal perspective on the eliciting of health states preferences

With the concept of Òsocietal perspectiveÓ in mind, a study using the PTO and 8 EQ-5D defined health states, (using two selection criteria: states self assessed by people in a real context -women with breast cancer-, and similar distance in the TTO-York tariff), with a sample of 51 individuals selected from the general population of Navarra (Spain), was carried out. The main objectives were: 1) To elicit some EQ-5D health states values using a societal technique (PTO); 2) to check people concern about severity of illness when valuing equal gains from different starting points in the scale; and 3) to asses the effect on values of limited potential health improvements. The results shown very high values for the health states selected (0.90 to 0.99), due to the effect of anchoring on immediate death. Severity does not seem to be considered by the majority of people interviewed, although some 25% of them showed preference for similar health gains in those individuals in worse initial health. The same can be said for the concern for the limited potential health improvement, where most people seem to show an utilitarian perception.