View article

Background The appropriate thresholds for decisions on the cost‐effectiveness of medical interventions remain controversial, especially in ‘end‐of‐life’situations. Evidence of the values placed on different types of health gain by the general public is limited. Methods Across nine European countries, 17 657 people were presented with different hypothetical health scenarios each involving a gain of one quality adjusted life year (QALY) and asked about their willingness to pay (WTP) for that gain. The questions included quality of life (QoL) enhancing and life extending health gains, and a scenario where respondents faced imminent, premature death. Results The mean WTP values for a one‐QALY gain composed of QoL improvements were modest (PPP 11000).WhencomparingQALYgainsobtainedinthenearfuture,thevaluationoflifeextensionexceededthevaluationofQoLenhancinggains(meanWTPPPP 19 000 for a …