Implementing Data to Care-What Are the Costs for the Health Department?

BACKGROUND

The Cooperative Re-Engagement Controlled Trial (CoRECT) is a randomized controlled trial that uses a combined health department-provider data to care (D2C) model to identify out-of-care HIV-infected persons. We present cost data for programmatic aspects of the trial during the start-up period (first 30 days of the study).

METHODS

We used microcosting methods to estimate health department start-up costs. We collected start-up cost data between September 2016 and December 2016; 3 health departments completed a form to capture expenses for the initial 30 days of study implementation; the start date varied by health department. All costs are expressed in 2016 US dollars.

RESULTS

Among the 3 health departments, the total start-up costs ranged from $14,145 to $26,058. Total start-up labor hours ranged from 224 to 640 hours.

CONCLUSIONS

As D2C expands nationally with cooperative agreement, PS 18-1802 health departments may be able to use a similar analysis to consider the labor, time, and resources needed to implement D2C within their jurisdiction.