Dr. Malina Müller

Head of Health Economics

Dear readers,

May marked an exciting first for us: WifOR exhibited at ISPOR! Alongside colleagues from Health Economics and Business Development teams, I travelled to Boston for ISPOR 2023. From progressive health metrics at a macroeconomic level to the Socioeconomic Burden of Disease and the Social Impact of innovative medicines, ISPOR Boston was the perfect opportunity to share our research with the scientific community in the USA. We also offered a sneak-peak into our upcoming tool: The Health ROI Assessor – designed to target smart health investments.

Responsible for almost a third of all deaths worldwide and affecting over half a billion people annually, cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) have come to be known as the silent pandemic. This means millions of premature and preventable deaths every year as well as severe consequences for many people's quality of life. But the burden of CVDs also carries consequences for society and the economy. Discover how the extent of this burden and how it can be effectively prevented in our recently published article What is the Socioeconomic Burden of Cardiovascular Disease?

When it comes to medical products, Heath Technology Assessments (HTAs) typically limit their scope to only evaluate health benefits. These benefits are, without doubt, important – not least due to patient welfare often being largely determined by medicines. But what impact do medicines have for the rest of society? From greater patient productivity and spillover effects for caregivers to more novel metrics such as the value of hope instilled, medicines have a multidimensional contribution to society. Find out more in WifOR's recent study Assessing the Value of Medicines Beyond Patients’ Health Benefits.

Geneva recently hosted the World Heart Summit and World Health Assembly. Both events focused on improving lives, advancing health for all, and tackling the burden of disease globally. Achieving these goals requires recognizing the value of health, setting health as a priority on political agendas, and making investments which deliver effective outcomes. But how can public and private investors make smart health investments which maximize return for citizens and society? Discover more in our article Health investments create value for public health and the economy.

Yours sincerely,

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