Economics of Diabetes: Cost & Profits

The total estimated cost of diagnosed diabetes in the U.S. in 2022 was $412.9 billion, including:

• $306.6 billion in direct medical costs
• $106.3 billion in indirect costs

This represents a significant increase from previous years:

• 7% increase in inflation-adjusted direct medical costs from 2017
• 35% increase from 2012 calculations (in 2022 dollars)

Direct Medical Costs

• Care for people diagnosed with diabetes accounts for 1 in 4 health care dollars spent in the U.S.
• On average, people with diabetes incur annual medical expenditures of $19,736, of which approximately $12,022 is attributable to diabetes
• People with diabetes have medical expenditures 2.6 times higher than what would be expected without diabetes
• Glucose-lowering medications and diabetes supplies account for about 17% of the total direct medical costs attributable to diabetes

Indirect Costs

Major contributors to indirect costs include:

• Reduced employment due to disability: $28.3 billion
• Presenteeism (reduced productivity while at work): $35.8 billion
• Lost productivity due to 338,526 premature deaths: $32.4 billion
• Absenteeism (missed workdays): $5.4 billion annually

Cost Distribution

• 61% of diabetes costs are for adults aged 65 or older, which is mainly paid by Medicare
• Women with diabetes spend more on average than men on annual health care expenditures
• Black Americans with diabetes pay the most in direct health care expenditures
• People with diabetes above age 65 spend roughly double on per capita annual health care expenditures compared to other adult age groups

Global Perspective

The global cost of diabetes is projected to increase from $1.3 trillion in 2015 to between $2.1 and $2.5 trillion in 2030, potentially reaching 2.2% of global GDP.

Economic Impact on Workforce

• If people with diabetes participated in the workforce like peers without diabetes, there would be 2 million more people between the ages of 18 and 65 in the workforce

Insulin Costs

• The inflation-adjusted cost of insulin increased 24% from 2017 to 2022
• Spending on insulin tripled in the past 10 years, increasing from $8 billion in 2012 to $22.3 billion in 2022

In conclusion, the economic burden of diabetes continues to grow substantially, affecting individuals, healthcare systems, and society at large. The costs are borne by various stakeholders, including patients, employers, healthcare providers, and government programs like Medicare and Medicaid. This economic data underscores the importance of diabetes prevention, management, and the need for cost-effective interventions to mitigate the financial impact of the disease.

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