A Method for Comparing Health Inequality Impact Magnitudes, with an Illustration for Hypothetical Treatments of 1336 Diseases

Key Points

• The research aims to develop a method for quantifying and comparing the impacts of health inequalities across different diseases.
• Calculated quality-adjusted life-year differences between socially disadvantaged and advantaged groups.
• Assessed health opportunity costs associated with various treatments.
• Used hypothetical examples to illustrate the method's application across 1336 diseases.
• Identified varying magnitudes of health inequality impacts among different diseases.
• Showed that treatment strategies have differing effects on quality of life across social groups.
• Demonstrated a significant gap in health outcomes linked to social disadvantage.