Quantitative estimation in Health Impact Assessment: Opportunities and challenges

Health Impact Assessment (HIA) considers multiple effects on health of policies, programs, plans and projects and thus requires the use of diverse analytic tools and sources of evidence. Quantitative estimation has desirable properties for the purpose of HIA but adequate tools for quantification exist currently for a limited number of health impacts and decision settings; furthermore, quantitative estimation generates thorny questions about the precision of estimates and the validity of methodological assumptions. In the United States, HIA has only recently emerged as an independent practice apart from integrated EIA, and this article aims to synthesize the experience with quantitative health effects estimation within that practice. We use examples identified through a scan of available identified instances of quantitative estimation in the U.S. practice experience to illustrate methods applied in different policy settings along with their strengths and limitations. We then discuss opportunity areas and practical considerations for the use of quantitative estimation in HIA.