The value of COVID-19 tests in Latin America

Jennifer M. Trudeau, Jessica Alicea-Planas and William F. Vásquez

Economics & Human Biology, 2020, vol. 39, issue C

Abstract: Testing is a crucial strategy to control the spread of a pandemic. Voluntary participation in this strategy will depend on individual preferences towards and willingness-to-pay (WTP) for test results. We distributed a web-based, contingent valuation survey to social-media users in 16 Latin American countries to evaluate regional attitudes towards the emerging COVID-19 outbreak and WTP for COVID-19 testing. We observe that the cost of the test and household income are important determinants of testing intentions. We find higher WTP among those reporting greater concern relative to the average respondent. Accounting for uncertainty, our results indicate a WTP of approximately $45 dollars or 4.2 % of monthly income among respondents. These results, paired with our predicted participation rate of between 84–94 % for a $1 test, suggest that local officials will be able to effectively recruit participation in this mitigation strategy given the appropriate subsidization structure.

Keywords: Test; COVID-19; Uptake rate; Willingness to pay; Contingent valuation; Latin America (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D12 I12 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:ehbiol:v:39:y:2020:i:c:s1570677x2030201x

DOI: 10.1016/j.ehb.2020.100931

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