Societal Cost of Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) Mortality Using Value of Statistical Life
Keywords:
Value of statistical life, causes of death, coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, societal costs, economic impact of the pandemicAbstract
The study is devoted to estimating the societal cost of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) mortality in 2020 using the value of statistical life. According to official statistics, most deaths due to coronavirus are observed among older people. Since there is no consensus in the current scientific literature on whether value of life estimates need to be age-adjusted for purposes of cost-benefit analysis, both age-adjusted and age-invariant estimates are provided for comparison. The article presents three approaches to determining societal costs of the pandemic: using the average value of statistical life for the entire population, using a decreasing coefficient (senior discount) for older ages, and considering age-adjusted estimates of the value of statistical life, depending on life expectancy within age cohorts. According to the calculation results, the social damage from mortality due to COVID-19 in 2020 amounted to 41,721, 32,956-34,522, and 15,5 trillion rubles using the approaches mentioned above, respectively. All these values are significantly higher than the economic damage, amounting to just under 1 trillion rubles, according to Rospotrebnadzor. This example demonstrates the potential of using the value of statistical life estimates to analyze changes in social welfare and clearly illustrates how underestimating such changes distort overall damage estimates. The research results can be used in public administration and for scientific purposes for a comprehensive analysis of the coronavirus pandemic consequences for Russian society.
References
Зубова Е.А. Стоимость жизни в России: оценка на панельных микроданных за 2010–2020 гг. // Прикладная эконометрика. 2022a. № 1 (65). С. 45–64.
Зубова Е.А. Растет ли стоимость жизни человека в России с возрастом и повышением уровня образования? // Population and Economics. 2022b. № 6 (1). C. 62–79. DOI: 10.3897/popecon.5.e79796
Aldy J., Atkinson G., Kotchen M.J. Environmental Benefit-Cost Analysis: A Comparative Analysis Between the United States and the United Kingdom // Annual Review of Resource Economics. 2021. Vol. 13. P. 267–288. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-resource-040821-045913
Aldy J.E., Viscusi W.K. Age Differences in the Value of Statistical Life: Revealed Preference Evidence // Review of Environmental Economics and Policy. 2007. Vol. 1. Is. 2. P. 241–260.
Baker R., Chilton S., Jones-Lee M., Metcalf H. Valuing Lives Equally in a Benefit-Coast Analysis of Safety Projects: A Method to Reconcile Theory and Practice // Safety Science. 2009. Vol. 47. Is. 6. P. 813–816. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssci.2008.10.009
Banzhaf H.S. The Value of Statistical Life: A Meta-Analysis of Meta-Analyses // National Bureau of Economic Research Working Paper Series. 2021. № 29185. URL: https://www.nber.org/system/files/working_papers/w29185/w29185.pdf
Hammitt J. Valuing Mortality Risk: Theory and Practice // Environmental Science and Technology. 2000. Vol. 34. Is. 8. P. 1396–1400. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1021/es990733n
Krupnick A. Mortality-Risk Valuation and Age: Stated Preference Evidence // Review of Environmental Economics and Policy. 2007. Vol. 1. Is. 2. P. 261–282.
Murphy K.M., Topel R.H. The Value of Health and Longevity // Journal of Political Economy. 2006. Vol. 114. Is. 5. P. 871–904.
Robinson L.A., Sullivan R., Shogren J.F. Do the Benefits of COVID-19 Policies Exceed the Costs? Exploring Uncertainties in the Age-VSL Relationship // Risk Analysis: An Official Publication of the Society for Risk Analysis. 2021. Vol. 41. Is. 5. P. 761–770. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/risa.13561
Viscusi W.K. Pricing the Global Health Risks of the COVID-19 Pandemic // Journal of Risk and Uncertainty. 2020. Vol. 61. P. 101–128. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11166-020-09337-2
Viscusi W.K. The Value of Life: Estimates with Risks by Occupation and Industry // Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International. 2004. Vol. 42. Is. 1. P. 29–48. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/ei/cbh042
Viscusi W.K., Masterman C. Income Elasticities and Global Values of a Statistical Life // Journal of Benefit-Cost Analysis. 2017. Vol. 8. Is. 2. P. 226–250. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/bca.2017.12
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Similar Articles
- Svetlana V. Senotrusova, Iana V. Sibiriakova, Assessment of World Economy Transformation Impact on Dynamics of Economic Indicators in the World’s Leading Countries and Russia at the Beginning of the 21st Century , Public Administration. E-journal (Russia): No. 101 (2023)
- Muza A. Sazhina, Anastasia A. Ilina, National Innovation System in Conditions of Economic Destabilization , Public Administration. E-journal (Russia): No. 84 (2021)
- Alsu M. Akhmerova, COVID-19 Pandemic Crisis Impact on the Behavior of Firms and Consumers , Public Administration. E-journal (Russia): No. 87 (2021)
- Nadezda E. Laktaeva, Irina V. Kuptsova, Prospects of Using Happiness Economics Concept in Assessing a Macroregion Socio-Economic Development , Public Administration. E-journal (Russia): No. 101 (2023)
- Kirill Yu. Degtyarev, Assessment of Economic Sanctions Impact on the Real Sector of the Russian Economy , Public Administration. E-journal (Russia): No. 102 (2024)
- Irina E. Kalabikhina, Mikhail A. Maksimov, The Gender Gap in Demographic Losses during the Coronavirus Pandemic: Why the Female Life Expectancy Losses Are More than the Male Ones in Russia , Public Administration. E-journal (Russia): No. 97 (2023)
- Vladimir S. Osipov, Michael N. Tolmachev, Alexander P. Tsypin, Assessment of COVID Crisis Impact on the Unemployment Rate in Post-Soviet Countries , Public Administration. E-journal (Russia): No. 96 (2023)
- Diana A. Narozhnaya, Daniil A. Polenok, Urban Health Approach in Public Health Management in the Context of Coronavirus Pandemic (COVID-19) , Public Administration. E-journal (Russia): No. 85 (2021)
- Igor N. Molchanov, Natalia P. Molchanova , Government Financial Regulation in a Period of Increasing Global Instability , Public Administration. E-journal (Russia): No. 85 (2021)
- Ekaterina A. Panova, The Impact of Sanctions on Russian Manufacturing Enterprises , Public Administration. E-journal (Russia): No. 96 (2023)
You may also start an advanced similarity search for this article.