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2007 Progress Report: Valuing Morbidity Using Willingness to Pay and Health Utility Measures

EPA Grant Number: R831593
Title: Valuing Morbidity Using Willingness to Pay and Health Utility Measures
Investigators: Hammitt, James K. , Haninger, Kevin
Institution: Harvard University
EPA Project Officer: Wheeler, William
Project Period: January 15, 2005 through January 14, 2007 (Extended to January 14, 2009)
Project Period Covered by this Report: January 15, 2007 through January 14, 2008
Project Amount: $333,396
RFA: Valuation for Environmental Policy (2003)
Research Category: Economics and Decision Sciences

Description:

Objective:

This project is aimed at improving the valuation of environmental health risks. The broad goal of the work is to determine the feasibility of developing credible and accurate values of reducing morbidity risk that can be widely applied or transferred when estimating the benefits of environmental policies. More specifically, we propose to conduct a stated-preference survey to estimate the effects of several attributes (i.e., duration and severity of symptoms, the dimensions of health that are impaired, and whether the illness is identified by name) on willingness to pay (WTP) to reduce morbidity risk from environmental contaminants. We will compare WTP to reduce risks of illness to the respondent, a child, and another adult in the household.

Progress Summary:

We have developed the survey instrument, resolving issues related to the experimental design, risk attributes, measures of health status, and selection of a market-based scenario for reducing health risk. We have also subcontracted administration of the survey to Knowledge Networks, a qualified research firm with expertise in web-enabled surveys.

Future Activities:

The survey instrument will be finalized and delivered to Knowledge Networks for programming and testing. After testing is complete, we will field a small pretest, revise the survey if necessary, and field the main wave of the survey. We anticipate fielding the main wave of the survey this summer and analyzing the data this fall.

Supplemental Keywords:

cost-benefit, cost-effectiveness, preferences, utility, diet, chemicals, decision making, nonmarket valuation, contingent valuation, survey, preferences, willingness-to-pay, social science, , Economic, Social, & Behavioral Science Research Program, Scientific Discipline, RFA, Social Science, decision-making, Health Risk Assessment, Ecological Risk Assessment, Economics & Decision Making, Economics, morbidity risks, econometric analysis, ecosystem valuation, mortality, policy analysis, decision analysis, decision making, belief system, environmental policy, human health risk, policy making, willingness to pay, health utility measures, valuation, valuation of mortality

Progress and Final Reports:
2005 Progress Report
2006 Progress Report
Original Abstract

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The perspectives, information and conclusions conveyed in research project abstracts, progress reports, final reports, journal abstracts and journal publications convey the viewpoints of the principal investigator and may not represent the views and policies of ORD and EPA. Conclusions drawn by the principal investigators have not been reviewed by the Agency.

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