A reference set of Health State Utility Values for gambling problem behaviour, a survey of the Australian general population: implications for future healthcare evaluations.

Objectives

This study sought to investigate the impact of gambling habits on HSUVs and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) using SF-36 measure in the Australian general population.

Methods

Using the 2015 wave of Household Income and Labour Dynamics in Australian survey (n = 17,606) age- and gender-specific HSUVs were estimated according to the severity of gambling problem (measured by the Problem Gambling Severity Index). OLS and Tobit regression models were used to control for demographic and other confounding factors. Marginal effects of the gambling statuses for the expected value of HSUV were estimated to calculate quality-adjusted life year (QALY) loss attributed to gambling.

Results

The predicted HSUVs on Australian weights for low- and moderate-risk and problem gamblers were -0.030 (95%CI -0.060 to -0.000), -0.057 (95%CI -0.089 to -0.025) and -0.181 (95%CI -0.239 to -0.123) less than non-gamblers &/or non-problem gamblers. Low HSUVs related to gambling behavior were predicted by age, gender, education, and employment. Gambling was responsible for 443.44 (95%CI -695.16 to -188.13) QALY losses in 2015 in the Australian general population.

Conclusion

Gambling is significantly and negatively associated with HRQoL and HSUVs and the magnitude of this association is determined by the severity of the gambling problem.