Willingness to Pay for Centralized Modern Locust Bean Processing Equipment in Ekiti State, Nigeria

This study investigated the propensity to pay for modern apparatus processing locust beans in Ekiti State, Nigeria. Utilizing primary data and a multistage sampling strategy, 240 processors were chosen for the study. The collected data were analyzed utilizing descriptive statistics and an inferential statistical instrument, such as Logit and ordinary least square regression analysis. About 72 percent of processors were married and had an average of eight years of experience processing locust legumes. The majority of respondents belonged to a cooperative group (66.7%) and had no access to credit (100%). The average monthly income from processing was N18,000. The majority of respondents (65%) were unwilling to pay for the service of centralized, advanced or contemporary processing equipment. According to the results of the Logit regression analysis, the variables that significantly influence willingness to pay for the service of centralized modern locust bean processing equipment were household income and processing experience (1%), level of education and age (5%), and household size (10%). The Ordinary Least Square (OLS) analysis reveals that household size and education level were significant at the 1% level, while age and marital status were significant at the 5% level and processing experience was significant at the 1% level. The study suggests that processors ready to pay should form a formidable cooperative to secure grants or loans to establish a centralized, contemporary locust processing cottage. The government should educate processors on modern food processing and safety at all levels.

Analysis of willingness-to-pay for the treatment of acute facial inflammatory dermatoses with red and yellow light from light-emitting diodes / 中华皮肤科杂志

Objective:To analyze the willingness-to-pay (WTP) for the treatment of acute facial inflammatory dermatoses with red and yellow light from light-emitting diodes (LEDs), and to evaluate their cost-effectiveness.Methods:A questionnaire survey was conducted on outpatients with or without acute facial inflammatory dermatoses, which mainly manifested as erythema and swelling, in Department of Dermatology, Xiangya Hospital from August 2019 to June 2020. The WTP for the treatment of acute facial inflammatory dermatoses of varying severity with red and yellow light from LEDs were investigated, clinical data on the prevalence of facial skin diseases, previous medical visits and quality of life were collected, and a benefit-cost analysis was conducted. Logistic regression analysis was conducted to investigate factors influencing the patients′ WTP for the LED treatment.Results:The median WTP of the subjects was 200, 300 and 300 RMB yuan for 1-session treatment of three cases of acute facial inflammatory dermatoses of increasing severity assumed to require 1-, 3-, and 5-session LED treatments respectively, and the WTP for 1-session treatment of case 2 and case 3 was higher than the cost of 1-session LED treatment (217 RMB yuan). The subjects with high family incomes (≥ 100 000 RMB yuan/year) were significantly more willing to pay for the treatment than those with low family incomes (< 100 000 RMB yuan/year) (case 1: 40.46% vs. 27.50%, χ2 = 7.00, P = 0.008; case 2: 60.69% vs. 44.5%, χ2 = 9.75, P = 0.002; case 3: 51.20% vs. 48.8%, χ2 = 6.54, P = 0.011), and the subjects who never suffered from facial inflammatory dermatoses were significantly more willing to pay for the treatment than those who ever suffered (case 1: 35.49% vs. 28.82%, χ2 = 1.56, P = 0.212; case 2: 56.10% vs. 42.34%, χ2 = 5.92, P = 0.015; case 3: 68.32% vs. 56.75%, χ2 = 4.58, P = 0.032). No significant difference in the WTP was observed among patients with different facial dermatoses, different degrees of impairment on quality of life, or different treatment experience (all P>0.05) . Conclusion:The cost of red and yellow light from LEDs for the treatment of acute facial inflammatory dermatoses manifesting as erythema and swelling was highly acceptable in this population, and it was worthy of clinical promotion.

Willingness to pay integrated medical and elderly care services among the elderly in Hohhot City / 预防医学

Objective@#To investigate the willingness to pay integrated medical and elderly care services and identify the influencing factors among the elderly in Hohhot City, Inner Mongolia, so as to provide insights into promoting integrated medical and elderly care services.@*Methods@#The elderly at ages of 60 years and older were sampled using a convenient sampling method from public venues in four districts of Huimin, Saihan, Yuquan and Xincheng in Hohhot City from June to December 2021. Basic characteristics, health and disease burdens, social support and willingness to pay integrated medical and elderly care services were collected, and factors affecting the willingness to pay integrated medical and elderly care services were identified among the elderly using a multiple linear regression model. @*Results@#A total of 1 008 valid questionnaires were recovered, with an effective recovery rate of 96.74%. The respondents included 519 men (51.49%) and 489 women (48.51%), and had a mean age of (69.47±6.42) years. The monthly average fees of willingness to pay integrated medical and elderly care services were (2 076.49±36.79) Yuan, and there were 636 participants with 2 000 Yuan and less monthly average fees of willingness to pay integrated medical and elderly care services (63.10%). Multiple linear regression analysis showed that place of residence (β=180.832), satisfaction with housing (satisfied, β=-140.760), physical self-care ability (completely self-care: β=-238.244; mostly self-care: β=-254.557), burdens of disease diagnosis and treatment (able to afford: β=452.488; partly afford: β=228.626), monthly income (β=347.144), expenses of medications (β=0.019) and total score of social support (β=17.116) were factors affecting the willingness to pay integrated medical and elderly care services among the elderly. @*Conclusions@#The willingness to pay integrated medical and elderly care services among the elderly in Hohhot City is associated with place of residence, monthly income, satisfaction with housing, physical self-care ability, burden of disease diagnosis and treatment, expenses of medications and social support.

Study on cost-utility threshold based on the preference of population in Liaoning province / 中国药房

OBJECTIVE To study the cost-utility threshold （WTP/Q） based on the preference of the population in Liaoning province with willingness-to-pay（WTP） survey method， and to provide reference for decision-making. METHODS Using the method of questionnaire survey， quota sampling combined with snowball sampling were used to conduct telephone interviews with the general population in Liaoning province， collect data and analyze it. Probit regression combined with generalized linear model was used to analyze the relevant factors affecting WTP/Q. RESULTS A total of 755 general people were recruited. The WTP/Q of Liaoning population was 119 175 yuan，the average WTP/Q for improving the quality of life was 84 902 yuan， and the average WTP/Q for extending the survival period was 188 005 yuan. The analysis of influential factors showed that the older the age， the lower the probability of people purchasing medical interventions； the higher the education level and income， the greater the WTP/ Q； at the same time， the physical feelings of the interviewee， such as pain and depression， could also affect the WTP/Q results； compared with the scenario of improving quality of life， the WTP/Q for the extended survival period was higher. CONCLUSIONS The WTP/Q of Liaoning province based on the WTP survey method is about 2.07 times of the per capita gross domestic product of Liaoning province in the same period. The WTP/Q for extending survival period is about 2.21 times that of improving the quality of life. Therefore， interventions to improve quality of life and to extend the survival period need to be treated differently， in measurement or decision-making.

Valoración del servicio ecosistémico regulación hídrica en el Piedemonte Amazónico, Caquetá, Colombia / Evaluation of the ecosystem service protection of water sources in Amazon Piedemont, Caquetá, Colombia

RESUMEN Belén de los Andaquíes, Caquetá, ubicado en el piedemonte amazónico, es reconocido como municipio verde de Colombia, por su riqueza hídrica y paisajística. Es una zona con experiencia y potencial en la instauración de pagos por servicios ambientales PSA, como instrumento económico para incentivar la conservación de bosques, en la zona de influencia directa a la quebrada la Mono, una de las fuentes hídricas de relevancia en el suministro de agua, para el consumo humano en la población. Se empleó el método de valoración contingente, para hallar la disponibilidad a pagar DAP de los habitantes del área urbana, por la conservación de los bosques, para la protección del servicio ecosistémico de regulación hídrica. La DAP fue positiva y esto evidencia que la comunidad puede experimentar aumentos en el bienestar económico, a raíz de una medida de protección ambiental. Existe viabilidad económica y relevancia social al implementar estos instrumentos de política ambiental, para proteger servicios ecosistémicos importantes, en la mitigación y en la adaptación al cambio climático.

ABSTRACT Belén de los Andaquíes, Caquetá, located in the Amazon piedmont, is recognized as a green municipality of Colombia, for its wealth of water and landscapes. It is an area with experience and potential in the establishment of payments for environmental services PES, as an economic instrument to encourage the conservation of forests in the area of direct influence of the Mono stream, one of the most important sources of water for human consumption in the population. The contingent valuation method was used to find the willingness to pay WTPs of the inhabitants of the urban area for the conservation of forests for the protection of the ecosystem service of water regulation. The WTP was positive value, and this is evidence that the community can experience increases in economic welfare as a result of an environmental protection measure. There is economic viability and social relevance in implementing these environmental policy instruments to protect ecosystem services important for climate change mitigation and adaptation.

Disposição a pagar e Método de Valoração Contingente na avaliação econômica de serviços farmacêuticos / Willingness to pay and Contingent Valuation Method in the economic evaluation of pharmacy services

Objetivo: Sintetizar os principais pontos abordados em investigações de Disposição a Pagar (DAP) por serviços farmacêuticos, com foco no Método de Valoração Contingente (MVC). Métodos: Foi realizada uma revisão não sistemática com recuperação e análise de manuscritos publicados até novembro de 2020. A busca por estudos ocorreu nas bases MEDLINE, LILACS e SciELO. Resultados: Foram discutidos os fundamentos teóricos e processos metodológicos da análise, apresentando o MVC como principal perspectiva de abordagem. Enquanto delineamento do questionário, é sugerida uma estrutura que apresente, sequencialmente, os elementos: "conhecimento do participante sobre a intervenção", "apresentação da intervenção", "cenário hipotético", "pergunta DAP", "estado de saúde percebido" e "informações socioeconômicas". No mais, é enfatizada a importância da execução de etapas de validação, tanto do instrumento quanto da avaliação. Conclusão: Avaliar a preferência declarada da população por serviços farmacêuticos é uma estratégia ainda limitada. Se realizado adequadamente, esse tipo de investigação pode auxiliar gestores e tomadores de decisão no processo de implementação de novas tecnologias de cuidado.

Objective: To synthesize key points addressed in investigations of Willingness to Pay (WTP) for pharmaceutical care services, focusing on the Contingent Valuation Method (CVM). Methods: We performed a non-systematic review with recovery and analysis of manuscript published until November 2020. Three databases were majorly searched, including MEDLINE, LILACS and SciELO. Results: The theoretical foundations and methodological process were discussed, presenting the CVM as the main perspective. For questionnaire design, is suggested a structure that sequentially presents the elements: "participant knowledge on intervention", "intervention presentation", "hypothetical scenario", "WTP question", "perceived health status", and "socioeconomic information". In addition, we emphasize the importance of executing validation steps for the instrument of measurement as well as the evaluation process. Conclusion: Assessing the population's declared preference for pharmaceutical services is still a limited strategy. If carried out properly, this type of investigation can help managers and decision makers in the process of implementing technologies of care.

Ability and willingness to pay for family planning services in low resource settings: evidence from an operational research

Objective: This paper establishes levels and patterns of ability and willingness to pay (AWTP) for contraceptives, and associated factors. Study design: A three-stage cluster and stratified sampling was applied in selection of enumeration areas, households and individuals in a baseline survey for a 5-year Family planning programme. Multivariable linear and modified Poisson regressions are used to establish factors associated with AWTP. Results: Ability to pay was higher among men (84%) than women (52%). A high proportion of women (96%) and men (82%) were able to pay at least Ug Shs 1000 ($0.27) for FP services while 93% of women and 83% of men who had never used FP services will in future be able to pay for FP services costed at least Shs 2000 ($0.55). The factors independently associated with AWTP were lower age group (<25 years), residence in urban areas, attainment of higher education level, and higher wealth quintiles. Conclusion: AWTP for FP services varied by different measures. Setting the cost of FP services at Shs 1000 ($0.27) will attract almost all women (96%) and most of men (82%). Key determinants of low AWTP include residence in poor regions, being from rural areas and lack of/low education. Implications statement: Private providers should institute price discrimination for FP services by region, gender and socio-economic levels. More economic empowerment for disadvantaged populations is needed if the country is to realise higher contraceptive uptake. More support for total market approach for FP services needed

Cost of Medications, Preference and Willingness-to-Pay for Pain Relief among Adult Patients Diagnosed with Acute and Chronic Musculoskeletal Pain Conditions

Objective@#To determine the current cost, medication preferences, willingness to pay for symptom relief and reduced adverse events of adult patients with acute and chronic musculoskeletal pain. @*Methods@#This was a cross-sectional study among adult Filipinos consulted for musculoskeletal conditions at Family Medicine Clinic. Data were collected through a questionnaire and a systematic sampling of respondents. @*Results@#The study had a total of 342 participants with degenerative osteoarthritis as the most common primary diagnosis. Twenty percent (N=69/342) were acutely symptomatic while 273/342 (80%) have chronic musculoskeletal pain. Most would prefer medicines at a lower price point, effectively reduces pain, fast onset of action, longer therapeutic effects and less adverse effects. Willingness-to-pay was at an average price of Php 86.11 (SD±15.47) per pill for complete symptom relief. @*Conclusion@#Adult Filipinos with musculoskeletal pain symptoms prefer pain medicines with good symptom control, less adverse event and were willing to pay for complete symptom relief at an average of eighty-six pesos per pill.

Systematic Review of Factors Influencing the Demand for Medical and Health Insurance in Malaysia

@#Medical and health insurance provides financial protection against the consequences of the occurrences of health risks. Different perceptions have led to resistance to change, as well as the acceptance level from Malaysians. It is fundamental to study the reception and acceptance of all types of insurance schemes by Malaysians and to identify the knowledge and information pertaining to reception by Malaysians. Methods A systematic search was performed from six major search engines from 2013– 2018 in searches of published articles on factors that influence the demand or willingness to pay for health insurance among Malaysians. There were nine articles included, in which personal factor was found to influence the most when demanding for health insurance. Results Higher education level, younger age group, and good knowledge were associated with higher demand for health insurance. Higher household monthly income and the cost to pay were among the positively significant economic determinant factors to demand for medical insurance. Conclusions Education and promotion are important to understand why such policies were introduced and how they intend to serve the public before implementing major policies. These elements capture the essence of ‘health promotion’, which is about enabling people to take control over their health and thereby, improving their health. .

Awareness And Willingness To Pay For Hiv Self-Test Among Men Who Have Sex With Men From Metro Manila, Philippines

@#HIV self-testing (HIVST) is a new innovation in HIV testing where one can conduct an HIV test and interpret results secretly. However, the kit used for HIVST is not yet available in the Philippine market. This formative study aims to identify the awareness of men who have sex with men (MSM) from Metro Manila, Philippines towards HIVST as well as their willingness to pay for a self-test kit. Two-hundred fifty MSM who received a non-reactive HIV screening test result from a community-based voluntary counseling and testing center were recruited. Results indicated that slightly more than half of the respondents (56%) have heard about HIVST, indicating moderate level of awareness among MSM. The social media and the internet were the most prominent source of awareness about it. Frequent testers and being exclusively or more attracted to the same sex are more likely to be aware of HIVST. Median price one is willing to pay is 500 Pesos (roughly 10 US Dollars) and preference for saliva test that blood was reported. Willingness to pay was not related with any personal characteristic. Over-all, results implicate that efforts to inform MSM about HIVST should be initiated to increase awareness. Should it be available, HIVST services can be optimized if done through saliva test and if provided at low price.

Food Information Requirements of the Indian Consumers

Because of increase in the complexity of the food supply chain, there is information asymmetry in the food industry. But, in other hand, due to increase in concern over health, sustainability, local production, genetically modified crops and welfare issues, there is increase in concern of consumers regarding food information. Similarly, food information has direct implication to food safety. Although nutritional labelling is common in India, there exist knowledge gap about the actual informational need of the Indian consumers regarding the food they are consuming. This paper using the primary data collected through the structured web questionnaire tries to explore what information are required by the Indian consumers regarding the food and calculates their average willingness to pay for food with higher information. Survey was conducted in the month of March-April, 2019. A total of 514 valid responses were considered in the study. It was found that maximum number of consumers are willing to know more about chemical used at any stage, followed by production and marketing information and dietary health restrictions, respectively. It is found that Indian consumers at an average willing to pay 11.06% more for food with higher level of food information, than ordinary food. This research is valuable for future research on food information and various authorities to make policies regarding food information.

Undergraduate Students Willingness to Pay for Social Services of Trees at the Federal University of Agriculture Makurdi, Benue State, Nigeria

The study was conducted to provide information on students Willingness to Pay (WTP) for social services provided by tree species on the campus of the Federal University of Agriculture Makurdi (FUAM), Benue State, Nigeria. Random sampling technique was used to select 200 students from 10 Departments of the University. The semi-structured questionnaire was used to obtain data from the students. Vegetation survey was conducted to indentified tree species present in the selected colleges. The result of the study shows that Albizia zygia was the dominant tree species on the campus. Majority of the students (86.5%) were willing to pay (WTP) for social services of the tree species while (23.5%) were not WTP. Provision of shade (WMS= 4.19>3.00) and beautification (WMS=3.64>3.00) were the most social services provided by tree species. The mean amount the students were WTP for social tree services was N46 per month. Sex of the students differed significantly (P<0.05) from their WTP for the trees social services. Also, there was a significant difference (P<0.10) between the students level of study and their willingness to pay for the trees social services. The major reasons responsible for the insufficiency of trees on the campus as stated by the students were clearance for construction purposes (WMS4.15>3.00) and bush burning (WMS=3.62>3.00). It was recommended that harnessing of human, financial and material resources to address issues of sustainability of forest goods and services on the campus of FUAM should be prioritized. School administration, Departmental Staff and students should promote tree planting on campus.

Application and significance of willingness-to-pay in measuring the burden of skin diseases / 中华皮肤科杂志

According to the new biopsychosocial medical model,status and burden of diseases should be evaluated comprehensively,and health-related quality of life can be an important measurement index of the burden of diseases.Conventional assessment methods for health-related quality of life include interval-based assessment methods and preference-based assessment methods (health utilities and willingness-to-pay).This review introduces willingness-to-pay,and summarizes its applications in skin diseases.However,at present,only a small quantity of small-scale studies are available on willingness-to-pay,with only a few kinds of skin diseases involved.In the application of health-economic assessment of skin diseases,willingness-to-pay can serve as an approximate index of benefit gains,and be more valuable in practice than health utilities (the index of utility gains).With the increase in health-economic researches on skin diseases,more attention is paid to the willingness-to-pay for skin diseases and other health-economic assessment methods,and large-scale health-economic assessment-related researches are expected to be conducted on more kinds of skin diseases.

Consideration of pharmacoeconomic evaluation model and standard of payment threshold for rare diseases in China / 国际药学研究杂志

Rare diseases are usually defined as diseases with a low incidence in the population. According to re-ports, there were 6084 rare diseases found worldwide in 2016, involving 3715 related genes. 80% of rare diseases are caused by heredity, dominant or recessive inheritance or mutations. The definition of rare diseases by”incidence”in the population varies from country to country, like the EU <1/2000 and the United States <1/2500. A drug used to prevent, treat, or diagnose a rare disease is called an orphan drug. Due to the difficulty of research and development in this small target population, the high investment risk and the high R&D cost, the problem associated with high price of orphan drugs is very prominent. In the cost-effectiveness evaluation, the resulting incremental cost-effectiveness ratio(ICER)is likely to exceed the willingness to pay threshold adopted by most countries and regions, resulting in multiple countries raising its willingness to pay threshold reference standard(3-25 times GDP per capital)for orphan drugs, or simply ex-empting health technology assessment(HTA)assessment for orphan drugs and only evaluating the impact on medical in-surance fund. This paper systematically reviewed the various internationally accepted orphan drug HTA assessment meth-odologies. Based on the characteristics of rare diseases, the paper discusses the establishment of a model for the evalua-tion of orphan drugs and the multi-dimensional value assessment framework for HTA. At the same time, according to the internationally accepted norm, the paper also explores the way to determine the willingness to pay threshold in HTA as-sessment for orphan drugs in China.

Acceptance and willingness to pay for breast cancer screening among high?risk populations for breast cancer in urban China / 中华健康管理学杂志

Objective To determine the acceptance and willingness to pay for breast cancer screening among populations at high risk of breast cancer in urban China. Methods From 2012 to 2014, a cancer screening program in urban China (CanSPUC) was carried out in 13 provinces. The current survey was conducted among participants who were evaluated as having"high?risk for breast cancer"using a Harvard model (community?based) and then underwent breast mammography or ultrasonography screening procedure (hospital-based). The study mainly focused on their acceptance and willingness to pay under certain self?payment assumption for breast cancer screening. Results A total of 3 049 participants, with a mean age of 52.4±7.0 years, were included. The group aged 45 to 55 years accounted for 50% of the patients, and the median annual income per capita in the recent 5 years was 22 000 (15 000-34 000) Chinese yuan (CNY). Educational level, occupation, and marital status may affect their full acceptance and voluntary payment (P<0.05). Of all the participants, 99% (3 016 participants) could totally or substantially accept the breast cancer screening. When the breast cancer screening was assumed to be conducted every 3 years in the low?cost self?paid context, 85% (2 581 participants) of the participants had the willingness to pay, while only 17% were willing to pay >100 CNY. The remaining 15% of the residents showed no willingness to pay, and the unaffordable expenditure (70%, 438 participants) and unnecessary screening (24%, 112 participants) were the primary considerations. Significant differences in acceptance, willingness to pay, and payment were found among the provinces. Conclusion Almost all high?risk populations for breast cancer could accept breast cancer screening. The willingness to pay was relatively high, but the amount of payment was limited and low.

Willingness to Pay for Outpatient Services User Fees: Malaysian Community Perspective / Jurnal Sains Kesihatan Malaysia

@#Health care services are not often accessible and available for all people in one country due to multiple reasons such asthe geographical barrier, affordability, etc. The aim of this study was to analyse willingness to pay (WTP) for healthcareservices user fees among Malaysian population and determine its’ influencing factors. Structured interviews wereconducted involving 774 households in 4 states represents Peninsular Malaysia. Validated questionnaires with openended, followed by bidding games were applied to elicit maximum amount of WTP. The study was analysed descriptivelyand with multivariate regression method to adjust for potential confounding factors. More than half of respondents WTPmore than current fee for the government clinic outpatient registration fee with mean MYR3.76 (SD2.71). Majority ofrespondents not WTP more than usual for private clinic simple outpatient treatment charges with the mean MYR38.76(SD5.45). Factors that were found to have significant associations with WTP for both government and private clinic wereincome and having health insurance. Community willing to pay for healthcare services user fees and charges but atcertain amount. The healthcare services user fees and charges can be increased up to community WTP level to avoidfrom catastrophic expenditure.

How do Singapore patients view post-anaesthesia adverse outcomes? A single-centre willingness-to-pay study

<p><b>INTRODUCTION</b>Knowing how patients value the quality of anaesthesia helps anaesthesiologists to customise their service. However, generalising findings from Western population-based willingness-to-pay studies across different cultures and societies might result in the oversight of some contextualised perspectives of the anaesthesia experience. This study aimed to capture the Singapore perspective of undesired post-anaesthesia outcomes.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>132 patients recruited in a pre-anaesthetic evaluation clinic were given questionnaires describing ten possible post-anaesthetic outcomes. Outcomes were ranked for undesirability and assigned relative value through the hypothetical proportioning of SGD 100 to avoid their occurrence. Data was analysed with reference to patients' background and anaesthetic history.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>A response rate of 69.1% (n = 132/191) was achieved. Outcomes from the most to least undesirable were pain; vomiting; nausea; shivering; orodental trauma; sore throat; abrasions; somnolence; and thirst. Relative values allocated, in descending order, were pain; vomiting; nausea; orodental trauma; abrasions; sore throat; shivering; somnolence; and thirst.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Similar to previous studies in Western populations, pain, vomiting and nausea were the top three adverse outcomes that Singapore patients wished to avoid. However, discrepancies with Western patients were seen in spending attitudes, possibly accounted for by differences in healthcare socioeconomics. This study provided a better understanding of Singapore patients' perspectives on post-anaesthesia adverse outcomes and could help to improve treatment strategy and resource management.</p>

Economic valuation of the ecosystem services provided by a protected area in the Brazilian Cerrado: application of the contingent valuation method / Valoração econômica de serviços ecossistêmicos fornecidos por uma área protegida no Cerrado brasileiro: aplicação do método de valoração contingente

Abstract Considering that the economic valuation of ecosystem services is a useful approach to support the conservation of natural areas, we aimed to estimate the monetary value of the benefits provided by a protected area in southeast Brazil, the Serra do Cipó National Park. We calculated the visitor's willingness to pay to conserve the ecosystems of the protected area using the contingent valuation method. Located in a region under intense anthropogenic pressure, the Serra do Cipó National Park is mostly composed of rupestrian grassland ecosystems, in addition to other Cerrado physiognomies. We conducted a survey consisting of 514 interviews with visitors of the region and found that the mean willingness to pay was R$ 7.16 year-1, which corresponds to a total of approximately R$ 716,000.00 year-1. We detected that per capita income, the household size, the level of interest in environmental issues and the place of origin influenced the likelihood that individuals are willing to contribute to the conservation of the park, as well as the value of the stated willingness to pay. This study conveys the importance of conserving rupestrian grassland and other Cerrado physiognomies to decision makers and society.

Resumo Dado que a valoração econômica de serviços ecossistêmicos é uma abordagem útil para incentivar a conservação de áreas naturais, tivemos como objetivo estimar o valor monetário dos benefícios fornecidos por uma área protegida no sudeste do Brasil, o Parque Nacional da Serra do Cipó. Calculamos a disposição a pagar dos visitantes pela conservação dos ecossistemas abrangidos pela área protegida, usando o método da valoração contingente. Localizado em uma região que sofre intensa pressão antrópica, o Parque Nacional da Serra do Cipó é composto majoritariamente por campos rupestres, além de outras fitofisionomias do Cerrado. Realizamos 514 entrevistas com os visitantes da região e encontramos uma disposição a pagar média de R$ 7,16 ano-1, o que corresponde ao total de aproximadamente R$ 716.000,00 ano-1. Detectamos que renda per capita, número de dependentes, nível de interesse por temas relacionados ao meio ambiente e local de origem influenciam a probabilidade de o indivíduo estar disposto a contribuir para a conservação do parque, assim como o valor da disposição a pagar declarada. Este estudo atrai atenção dos tomadores de decisão e da sociedade para a importância de se conservar os campos rupestres e outras fitofisionomias do Cerrado.

Elderly residents' awareness, attitude and willingness-to-pay for elderly care medical institutions: An empirical analysis based on Chengdu / 中国卫生政策研究

Objective:To understand the elderly residents' awareness,attitude and willingness-to-pay for medical institutions which provide elderly care services in Chengdu.Methods:A questionnaire survey was conducted on 350 elderly residents who were selected randomly in Chengdu city.Results:In terms of awareness,the results show that the elderly residents' awareness of medical institutions which provide elderly care services is poor.Only a small proportion of them (19.40％) are aware of those medical institutions which provide elderly care service.However,after being provided with the relevant information,the aged people's willingness to live in medical institutions which provide elderly care services was relatively higher (56.72％).Most (79.70％) of the old people are willing to pay less than 2 000 yuan per month for the elderly services provided by the medical institutions.Age,preference of family supporting,and the awareness of medical institutions providing elderly care are the statistically significant determinants of old people's willingness to utilize the elderly care provided by medical institutions.Conclusion:More efforts should be made to improve the elderly people's awareness of the medical institutions providing elderly care.The financial access to the care should be strengthened by the government intervention.To satisfy diversified demands of elderly care,various types of services would be encouraged.

Economic evaluation of environmental epidemiological projects in national industrial complexes

In this economic evaluation of environmental epidemiological monitoring projects, we analyzed the economic feasibility of these projects by determining the social cost and benefit of these projects and conducting a cost/benefit analysis. Here, the social cost was evaluated by converting annual budgets for these research and survey projects into present values. Meanwhile, the societal benefit of these projects was evaluated by using the contingent valuation method to estimate the willingness-to-pay of residents living in or near industrial complexes. In addition, the extent to which these projects reduced negative health effects (i.e., excess disease and premature death) was evaluated through expert surveys, and the analysis was conducted to reflect the unit of economic value, based on the cost of illness and benefit transfer method. The results were then used to calculate the benefit of these projects in terms of the decrease in negative health effects. For residents living near industrial complexes, the benefit/cost ratio was 1.44 in the analysis based on resident surveys and 5.17 in the analysis based on expert surveys. Thus, whichever method was used for the economic analysis, the economic feasibility of these projects was confirmed.