As public accountability has increased and resources have become scarcer, public health, like clinical medicine, has been forced to re-examine the benefits and costs of its activities. Decision and economic analysis are basic tools in carrying out that mission. These methods have become standard practice in clinical medicine and health services research. This book, now in its second edition, was written in an effort to apply and adapt that experience with public health situations.
The book was originally written to introduce Centers for Disease Control and Prevention staff to the concepts...