Patient Preference and Adherence (Dec 2023)
A Preference-Based Value Assessment of the Fear of COVID-19 Contagion
Abstract
Nabin Poudel, Surachat Ngorsuraches Department of Health Outcomes Research and Policy, Harrison College of Pharmacy, Auburn University, Auburn, AL, USACorrespondence: Surachat Ngorsuraches, Department of Health Outcomes Research and Policy, Harrison College of Pharmacy, Auburn University, 4306A Walker Building, Auburn, AL, 36849, USA, Tel +1 334 844 8357, Fax +1 334 844 8307, Email [email protected]: To assess the preference-based value of the fear of COVID-19 contagion.Patients and Methods: We conducted a web-based, cross-sectional discrete choice experiment among 544 US adults. We used a Bayesian efficient design to generate choice sets. Each choice set comprised two hypothetical COVID-19 vaccine options characterized by seven attributes: chance of COVID-19 infection, chance of having severe symptoms from COVID-19 infection, vaccine protection duration, chance of mild to moderate adverse events from vaccination, chance of serious adverse events from vaccination, chance of future exposure to COVID-19 after vaccination, and out-of-pocket cost. We used mixed logit (ML) and latent class (LC) models to analyze data. Furthermore, we calculated the willingness-to-pay for eliminating the chance of future exposure to COVID-19, shedding light on the value attributed to the fear of contagion.Results: The ML model demonstrated all attributes, including the chance of future exposure to COVID-19, were statistically significant. The participants were willing to pay approximately $13,046 to eliminate the chance of future exposure to COVID-19 or their fear of contagion when COVID-19 was still pandemic. The LC model unveiled two participant classes with distinct preference weights for the chance of future exposure to COVID-19 and out-of-pocket cost attributes. Nevertheless, the chance of future exposure to COVID-19 exposure held a significant degree of importance in both classes.Conclusion: The chance of future exposure to COVID-19 exposure or fear of contagion was a significant element in the value assessment of COVID-19 vaccines. Further studies should be conducted to verify the value of fear of contagion and include it in the value assessment of healthcare technologies for infectious diseases.Keywords: COVID-19, discrete choice experiment, fear of contagion, patient preference
