Veterinary Epidemiology and Zoonosis

ASSESSING THE ECONOMIC COSTS OF DISEASE

• The total economic cost of disease can be measured as the sum of output losses and control expenditures.
• A reduction in output is a loss because it is a benefit that is either taken away (e.g., when milk containing antibiotic residues is compulsorily discarded) or unrealized (e.g., decreased milk yield).
• Expenditures, in contrast are increases in input, and are usually associated with disease control.
• Examples of control expenditures are veterinary intervention which may be used either therapeutically or prophylactically and increased use of agricultural labour.