An easy way to index reference prices from the costing manual
The costing manual for economic evaluations is a pivotal document for economic evaluations in the Netherlands. The costing manual is part of the Dutch health economic guidelines and describes methodology for costing studies and provide reference prices for a plethora of healthcare providers. Use of the costing manual, and its reference prices, is mandatory for economic evaluations in the Netherlands. The latest update of the costing manual has been published in 2024, and is available in Dutch and English.
Reference prices in the costing manual are updated to the year 2022. For studies in later years, cost prices need to be updated. As described in the costing manual, this is done by inflation correction, using consumer price index from Statistics Netherlands. Manual indexation is time consuming and prone to errors. As a solution, a tool was developed which automatically updates reference prices from the costing manual. In addition, updated estimates for the friction period can be retrieved. The tool also can also calculate the annuity factor and yearly depreciation and interest cost of medical equipment. Information on the R package is also provided so you can do the calculations yourself.
The tool is available here
Reference for the costing manual:
Methods and reference prices for economic evaluations in healthcare [in Dutch: Kostenhandleiding voor economische evaluaties in de gezondheidszorg: Methodologie en Referentieprijzen] (2024). Leona Hakkaart-van Roijen, Stijn Peeters, Tim Kanters.
Reference for the scientific article:
From Paper to Platform: Updating the Dutch Costing Manual and Launching a Web Application (2026). Leona Hakkaart-van Roijen, Stijn B. Peeters, Vivian Reckers-Droog, Silvia Evers, Ben Wijnen, Frederick W. Thielen, Tim A. Kanters. PharmacoEconomics. Doi 10.1007/s40273-026-01590-8