Integrated epi-econ assessment of vaccination

Abstract

Using an integrated epi-econ model, we compute the value of vaccines for Covid-19, both under a planner's solution and in competitive equilibrium. The specific model, developed in Boppart, Harmenberg, Hassler, Krusell, and Olsson (2020), factors in not just value-of-life aspects along with standard economic variables but also the value of leisure activities that rely on a social component. We find that the societal value of vaccination is large; we estimate that, translated into monetary terms, the value of vaccinating one young individual in the competitive equilibrium is $17,800. Externalities are large: less than half the societal value is internalized by individuals (assuming that they act purely in their self-interest). Finally, behavioral responses are important, with a substantial share of the value of vaccines being attributed to people enjoying more socially-oriented leisure when more people are vaccinated.

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© 2022 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY license http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

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DOI

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jedc.2022.104308

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https://www.research.ed.ac.uk/en/publications/37f1b438-16d7-4604-b9e9-407fa13c5300