Australian Centre for Economic Research on Health (ACERH)

JIM BUTLER
BEcon, MPolEcon, PhD(UQ)
ACERH Director and Professor
T: +61 2 6125 3688
E: Jim.Butler@anu.edu.au

Professor Butler is a health economist and foundation Director of ACERH. He has a PhD in economics from the University of Queensland and over 25 years research experience in health economics. He also has extensive teaching experience in health economics, including a PhD course in health economics during a six-month appointment as Associate Professor at The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania. Professor Butler also has extensive consulting experience, having undertaken projects for numerous government bodies and private sector organisations, including the World Bank. His research interests include health insurance, health care financing, hospitals costs and economic evaluation. In recent years, his work on health insurance has included projects on factors affecting the demand for private health insurance in Australia, and on genetic testing, health insurance and life insurance. He has also worked on public policy towards private health insurance, and on private hospital payment schemes for private health insurers.

Selected Publications

Somi, M.F., Butler, J.R.G., Vahid, F.,Njau, J.D. and Abdulla, S., "Household responses to health risks and shocks: A study from rural Tanzania raises some methodological issues", Journal of International Development, Vol.21 No.2, March 2009, pp.200-211. (Abstract)

McRae, I.S., Butler, J.R.G., Sibthorpe, B.M., Ruscoe, W., Snow, J., Rubiano, D. and Gardner, K.L., "A cost effectiveness study of integrated care in health services delivery: a diabetes program in Australia", BMC Health Services Research, Vol.8 Article 205, October 2008. (download)

Sidorenko, A.A. and Butler, J.RG., "Financing Health Insurance in Asia Pacific Countries", Asian Pacific Economic Literature, Vol.21 No.1, May 2007, pp.34-54. (Abstract)

Korda RJ and Butler JRG, "Effect of healthcare on mortality: Trends in avoidable mortality in Australia and comparisons with Western Europe ", Public Health, Vol.20 No.2, February 2006, pp.95-105.

Korda RJ and Butler JRG, "Trends in pneumonia rates explained by changes in coding practices" (letter), Internal Medicine Journal , Vol.35 No.2, February 2005, pp.138-9.

Butler JRG, Pianko S, Korda RJ, Nguyen S, Gow P, Roberts SK, Strasser SI, and Sievert W, "The direct cost of managing patients with chronic hepatitis B infection in Australia", Journal of Clinical Gastroenterology , Vol.38 No.10, November/December 2004, pp.S187-S192.

Butler JRG, McIntyre P, MacIntyre CR, Gilmour R, Howarth AL and Sander B, "The cost-effectiveness of pneumococcal conjugate vaccination in Australia", Vaccine, Vol.22 Nos 9-10, 2004, pp.1138-49.

Drummond C and Butler JRG, "The cost of treating mycobacterium ulcerans : Evidence from Australia ", Emerging Infectious Diseases , Vol.10 No.6, June 2004, pp.1038-43.

Butler JRG, "A comment on the response from Graham Wright" (letter), Australian Health Review , Vol.26 No.1, March 2003, pp.33-41.

Butler JRG, "Adverse selection, genetic testing and life insurance - lessons from health insurance in Australia ", Agenda , Vol.10 No.1, 2003, pp.73-89.

Butler JRG, "Policy change and private health insurance: Did the cheapest policy do the trick?", Australian Health Review , Vol.25 No.6, December 2002, pp.33-41.

Butler JRG, "Economic Evaluations of Screening Programs: A Review of Methods and Results", Clinica Chimica Acta, Vol.315 Nos 1-2, 2002, pp.31-40.

Butler JRG, "Public health programs to reduce HIV/AIDS" in P Abelson (ed.) Returns on Investment in Public Health: An Epidemiological and Economic Analysis , Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing, Canberra , 2002.

Butler JRG and Howarth AL, "Cost-effectiveness analysis" in National Health and Medical Research Council, Guidelines on the Prophylactic Use of RhD Immunoglobulin (Anti-D) in Obstetrics , NHMRC, Canberra, 1999, pp.93-178.

Butler JRG, "Estimating elasticities of demand for private health insurance in Australia", Working Paper No.43, National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health, Australian National University, Canberra, May 1999.

Butler JRG, "Health Expenditure" in Mooney GH and Scotton RB (eds) Economics and Australian Health Policy , Allen & Unwin, Sydney, 1998, pp.40-71.