Cost minimization analysis is used to compare two or more interventions to determine if they have equivalent outcomes.

• A. Cost Minimization Analysis
• B. Time Series Analysis
• C. Cost Effectiveness Analysis
• D. Cost Benefit Analysis

Answer: (A)

When the health outcomes of the interventions are the same or assumed to be the same, the analysis focuses only on cost. Cost minimization analysis compares the total costs of the options and identifies the cheapest one, since the effectiveness is treated as equivalent. This makes it the simplest form of economic evaluation—you’re choosing the option that achieves the same effect at the lower price.

This differs from other methods that still weigh outcomes: cost effectiveness analysis looks at cost per unit of health outcome (like cost per life-year gained), cost benefit analysis translates both costs and benefits into monetary terms to see net benefit, and time series analysis is a statistical technique used to examine trends over time rather than to compare interventions with equivalent outcomes. In the scenario where outcomes are equivalent, those other approaches aren’t necessary because the deciding factor is cost alone.

So the best approach here is cost minimization analysis because it specifically handles comparisons when outcomes are equal and focuses solely on identifying the least costly option.