Cost-effectiveness of evaluating the new technologies.

The problem of evaluating cost-effectiveness claims is complex and not readily solved. However, such evaluation represents an important direction for technology assessment as resources become more scarce. Neumann et al.'s analysis (1996) represents one solution to the relatively simple problem of pharmacoeconomic studies. In addition, Fryback and Thornbury included a useful method for approaching the cost-effectiveness of all medical technologies. I note that the cost-effectiveness cutoff of $50,000 per quality-adjusted life year is an incremental one, meaning that new technology must be substantially more cost-effective than older technology. This is currently not the case where incremental improvements over previous technology are often quite small. Interested readers are referred to standard tests in the field, including Drummond, Stoddart, and Torrance (1987), Eisenberg (1986), and Sox, Blatt, Higgins, and Marton (1988).