FOCUS AREAS
DIABETES
The American Diabetes Association (ADA) released new research on March 22, 2018 estimating the total costs of diagnosed diabetes have risen to $327 billion in 2017 from $245 billion in 2012, when the cost was last examined. The total estimated 2017 cost of diagnosed diabetes of $327 billion includes $237 billion in direct medical costs and $90 billion in reduced productivity.
The largest components of medical expenditures are:
-
30%
Hospital inpatient care
-
30%
Prescription medications to treat complications of diabetes
-
13%
Physician office visits
-
15%
Anti-diabetic agents and diabetes supplies
$9.601
per year is attributed to diabetes expenditures
2.3
times higher than in a patient without diabetes
People with diagnosed diabetes incur average medical expenditures of $16,752 per year, of which about $9,601 is attributed to diabetes. On average, people with diagnosed diabetes have medical expenditures approximately 2.3 times higher than what expenditures would be in the absence of diabetes.
For the cost categories analyzed, care for people with diagnosed diabetes accounts for one in four health care dollars in the U.S., and more than half of that expenditure is directly attributable to diabetes.
Indirect costs
include:
-
$26.9B
Reduced productivity while at work for the employed population
-
$2.3B
Reduced productivity for those not in the labor force
-
$3.3B
Increased absenteeism
-
$19.9B
Lost productive capacity due to early mortality
-
$37.5B
Inability to work as a result of disease-related disability
This highlights the substantial burden that diabetes imposes on society. Additional components of societal burden omitted from our study include intangibles from pain and suffering, resources from care provided by non-paid caregivers, and the burden associated with undiagnosed diabetes.