Issue 10: WELLBYS Vs QALYs

📣 For decades, policy evaluation has relied on QALYs (Quality-Adjusted Life Years) to measure the value of health interventions.

But people’s wellbeing is shaped by much more than health. WELLBYs (Wellbeing-Adjusted Life Years) extend the QALY approach by capturing the full range of life experiences, including relationships and work, community life and purpose.

This makes WELLBYs particularly powerful for evaluating the true societal impact of investments across health, education, social services, the environment, transport, and more.

Here’s a summary of the key differences:

• Difference in scope: QALYs focus mainly on health outcomes, whereas WELLBYs capture the full range of life experiences.

• Difference in method: QALYs are built on hypothetical trade-offs, whereas WELLBYs are based on people’s real experiences.

• Difference in Policy application: QALYs are mainly used in healthcare, whereas WELLBYs can be applied consistently across all areas of public policy.

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❓So why do some policymakers still assume that interventions are best evaluated using QALYs alone?

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💡At Simetrica-Jacobs, we’re leading the way in applying WELLBYs to measure what really matters.  

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Want to understand how WELLBYs can strengthen your business case or investment appraisal? Book a free discovery session with our Chief Economist, Edward Dallas.