Developing a framework to assess the cost-effectiveness of COMPARE - a global platform for the exchange of sequence-based pathogen data

Analysing the genomic data of pathogens with the help of next-generation sequencing (NGS) is an increasingly important part of disease outbreak investigations and helps guide responses. While this technology has already been successfully employed to elucidate and control disease outbreaks, wider implementation of NGS also depends on its cost-effectiveness. COMPARE short for 'Collaborative Management Platform for detection and Analyses of (Re-) emerging and foodborne outbreaks' is a major project, funded by the European Union, to develop a global platform for sharing and analysing NGS data and thereby improve the rapid identification, containment and mitigation of emerging infectious diseases and foodborne outbreaks. This article introduces the project and presents the results of a review of the literature, composed of previous relevant cost benefit and cost-effectiveness analyses. The authors also outline the implications for a methodological framework to assess the cost-effectiveness of COMPARE and similar systems.