FYI from the latest issue of the American Journal of Public Health
Best wishes
David McDaid
LSE Health and Social Care


Am J Public Health 2005;95 1445-1452
http://www.ajph.org/cgi/content/abstract/95/8/1445?etoc

The Economic Burden of Home Care for Children with HIV and Other Chronic Illnesses 
Leslie S Wilson 1*, Judith Tedlie Moskowitz 2, Michael Acree 2, Melvin B. Heyman 3, Paul Harmatz 4, Stephen J. Ferrando 5, Susan Folkman 2 
1 University of California, San Francisco, Departments of Medicine and Pharmacy
2 University of California, San Francisco, Department of Medicine
3 University of California, San Francisco, Department of Pediatrics
4 Children's Hospital and Research Center at Oakland
5 Weill Medical College of Cornell University
Abstract	
Objectives. We compared types, amounts, and costs of home care for children with HIV and chronic illnesses, controlling for the basic care needs of healthy children to determine the economic burden of caring for and home care of chronically ill children. Methods. Caregivers of 97 HIV-positive children, 101 children with a chronic illness, and 102 healthy children were surveyed regarding amounts of paid and unpaid care provided. Caregiving value was determined according to national hourly earnings and a market replacement method. Results. Chronically ill children required significantly more care time than HIV-positive children (7.8 vs 3.9 hours per day). Paid care accounted for 8% to 16% of care time. Annual costs were $9300 per HIV-positive child and $25 900 per chronically ill child. Estimated national annual costs are $86.5 million for HIV-positive children and $155 to $279 billion for chronically ill children. Conclusions. Informal caregiving represents a substantial economic value to society. The total care burden among chronically ill children is higher than that among children with HIV. (Am J Public Health.
Key Words: Epidemiology, Insurance, Health Policy, HIV/AIDS, Socioeconomic Factors