Decision-making is an essential part of government action. The government is responsible for using the tools at its disposal that will facilitate making the best decisions possible. This article holds that the cost-benefit analysis (CBA), when used appropriately, can improve environmental and public health policies. In addition to describing how CBA began to be used in the United States, some of the weaknesses in its current application are analyzed and alternatives to correct them are described.

PDF of the full article is available in Spanish here.