Proportional means regression for censored medical costs.

The semiparametric proportional means model specifies that the mean function for the cumulative medical cost over time conditional on a set of covariates is equal to an arbitrary baseline mean function multiplied by an exponential regression function. We demonstrate how to estimate the vector-valued regression parameter using possibly censored lifetime costs. The estimator is consistent and asymptotically normal with an easily estimable covariance matrix. Simulation studies show that the proposed methodology is appropriate for practical use. An application to AIDS is provided.