(b).

Cost parameters (over 1-year period)	Mean costs ($)	Range ($)	Probability distributionc	Sources/Comments
Direct costs × 1 year (nonpharmaceuticals)a
Remission	3,368.34	1263.13–2105.21	Gamma (31.5, 0.019)	Clarke et al. 2004 [18]; Clarke et al. 2008 [17]; range assumed to be ±25% mean
Relapse	6,486.85	2432.57–4054.29	Gamma (29.2, 0.009)	Clarke et al. 2004 [18]; Clarke et al. 2008 [17]; range assumed to be ±25% mean
Indirect costs × 1 yearb
Remission	16,066.38	6024.89–10041.49	Gamma (16.1, 0.002)	Panopalis et al. 2007 [19]; Clarke et al. 2008 [17]; range assumed to be ±25% mean
Relapse	17,128.13	6423.05–10705.09	Gamma (18.3, 0.002)	Panopalis et al. 2007 [19]; Clarke et al. 2008 [17]; range assumed to be ±25% mean
ESRD/dialysis: mean cost per person × 1 year	86,608	n/a	Gamma (75.0, 0.002)	USRDS 2012 [20]

ESRD: end stage renal disease; USRDS: United States Renal Data System.

^aDirect costs included care provided by specialists, nonspecialists, nonphysician healthcare professionals, laboratory studies, imaging studies, emergency room visits, and outpatient surgery and hospitalizations [18].

^bIndirect costs included time lost from labor and nonlabor (i.e., household work) market activity as well as time that a caregiver spent helping the patient receiving healthcare services and the time the caregiver spent doing housework [19].

^cGamma distributions are characterized by (α, λ); α = μ ²/s ², λ = μ/s ², where μ = mean; s ² = variance.