The Cost-Effectiveness of Screening the U.S. Blood Supply for

Results of Base-Case Analysis: The cost-effectiveness of annual, national minipool testing was $483 000 per quality-adjusted life-year (QALY), whereas the cost-effectiveness of annual, national individual donation testing was $897 000/QALY. The costeffectiveness of targeted individual donation testing in an area experiencing an outbreak coupled with minipool testing elsewhere was $520 000/QALY. Results of Sensitivity Analysis: In 1-way analyses, the most important influences were the prevalence of West Nile virus and the cost of minipool testing and individual donation testing. The 95% range of results from probabilistic sensitivity analysis for targeted individual donation testing was $256 000 to $1 044 000/ QALY. Limitations: The outcomes of West Nile virus infection were based on data from the general population rather than from the population who received transfusions. The results are most useful in the context of geographically focused outbreaks of West Nile virus infection. Conclusions: Using targeted individual donation testing to interdict blood donations that are positive for the West Nile virus is relatively cost-effective but is highly dependent on West Nile virus prevalence.