Measuring effects of welfare interventions with Capability Adjusted Life Years (CALYs)

Research questionnsHow does the program “Social support in independent living” in Umeå affect clients’ capabilities?Is “Social support in independent living” in Umeå a cost-effective intervention?What is the cost per CALY gained in three programs run by the Red Cross?Which capabilities are the most effective and cost-effective to address when targeting the worst-off groups through welfare interventions?What is the monetary threshold value for a CALY in the Swedish context?

Method and data Our research group has developed a model for economic analysis of e.g. social interventions.

Effects are measured in Capability Adjusted Life Years (CALYs), and the amount of CALYs gained is compared to the costs necessary to run the intervention.

However, CALYs would work perfectly in the municipalities and measure the benefits from e.g., social services and education.CALYs are based on Sen’s capability approach, and in collaboration with about ten NGO’s the following were selected as particularly important:health, social relations, financial situation including residence, occupation, security, and political rightsCALYs are measured through six statements, and they all have the same answer options; “agree completely”, “agree partly” and “not agree”.

Every combination of capabilities can be translated to a “weight” between one and zero..

Societal relevance and utilisation In recent years has the need of economic analysis and prioritisations of public policies became more pronounced. “Social investments” has got a  attention among municipalities, and the idea is to develop condition and methods for activities assumed to create social and health benefits.

However, one problem is the lack of an economic analysis with measures costs and attribute a value to benefits.

So far a simple method has been the practice: There is a cost linked to implementation of a certain activity, and if the activity are successful, “other” costs will decrease.

If the decrease in “other costs” are larger then the implementation cost, the activity is “profitable”.We argue that CALYs are relevant for the municipalities and even for NGO’s.

We collaborate in this application with Umeå municipality and Umeå Red Cross, and the aim is to use CALYs in economic analyses of social services.

Implementation Staff in the municipality and Red Cross respectively, will distribute and collect the questionnaire.Regarding the threshold value, we will organize workshops and use a commercial panel for a survey