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The effects of pharmaceutical consumption and obesity on the quality of life in the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries

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Abstract

Objective: The objective of this study is to validate our earlier work on life expectancy with more recent data and, more importantly, to extend it to examine quality of life, not only the length of life.

Design and setting: The analysis focuses on the production of health, disaggregating healthcare into pharmaceutical consumption and other healthcare. Going beyond our earlier work, measures of health include life expectancy and disability-adjusted life expectancy (DALE). Also, we consider the impact of obesity. The sample was 18 Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries. The measure of pharmaceutical consumption is the best that is available for these countries.

Main outcome measures and results: Confirming our earlier work, pharmaceutical consumption has a positive and statistically significant effect on life expectancy at 40 and 60 years (significant at the 0.05 level, based on a two-tailed test). The effects are slightly larger than in the earlier work. Turning to DALE, pharmaceutical consumption has a positive and statistically significant effect at birth and at 60 years (significant at the 0.05 and 0.01 levels, respectively), based on a two-tailed test. The effects on DALE are larger than the effects on life expectancy.

Conclusions: Increased pharmaceutical consumption helps improve quality of life, as well as life expectancy.

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Acknowledgements

Our earlier work on this matter was supported by a grant from the Institute d’Etudes Politiques (Sciences Po) de Paris. The more recent work, reported here, was supported by a grant from Pfizer, Astra-Zeneca, Bristol-Meyers Squibb and Merck. Versions of this paper have been presented at Talloires, France; UCLA; the University of California, Berkeley; Curtin University in Perth, Australia; the American Enterprise Institute; and the International Health Economics Association meetings in York, England. We are grateful for comments from participants, especially Tom Rice and Ernst Berndt. Further, we are grateful for expert research assistance and helpful comments from Dominick Esposito.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Economics, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, California, 93106, USA

    H. E. Frech III

  2. Public Research Division, CNA Corporation, Alexandria, Virginia, USA

    Richard D. Miller Jr

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  1. H. E. Frech III
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  2. Richard D. Miller Jr
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Correspondence to H. E. Frech III.

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Frech, H.E., Miller, R.D. The effects of pharmaceutical consumption and obesity on the quality of life in the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries. Pharmacoeconomic 22 (Suppl 2), 25–36 (2004). https://doi.org/10.2165/00019053-200422002-00004

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