PRS26 TOTAL ECONOMIC BURDEN OF ASTHMA IN THE UNITED STATES

Abstract

The cost of asthma is an important measure of the impact of the disease on society. Presenting the burden of the disease in monetary terms provides critical information to decision makers for better allocation of health-care resources. In this study we analyzed the prevalence, medical costs, and costs of absenteeism (missed school and workdays) and mortality attributable to asthma. The primary source of data for this study was the 2008-2013 household component of the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS). We used a two-part regression model to estimate annual per person medical expenditure and negative binomial models to estimate asthma-related absenteeism. We applied a human capital approach to measure the value of absenteeism and mortality. We used personal weights from MEPS to estimate national prevalence and costs of asthma. Prevalence of treated asthma in the United States ranged from 4.81% in 2008 to 5.16 in 2011. Over the 2008-2013 period, the annual per-person incremental medical cost of asthma was $3,266 (95% CI: 2,687-3,844) in 2015 US dollars, with $1,830 (1,409-2,251) attributable to prescription medication, $640 (504-776) to office-based providers visits, $176 (79-273) to hospital-based outpatient visits, $529 (288-771) to hospitalizations, and $105 (83-127) to emergency rooms visits. In total, during 2008-2013, asthma was responsible for $3 (2.2-3.6) billion in losses due to missed work and school days, $29 (28.1-29.9) billion due to asthma-related mortality, and $50.3 (32.0-68.7) billion in medical costs. All combined, the total cost of asthma in the United States based on the pooled sample amounted to $81.9 (63.5-100.3) billion in 2013. Asthma places a significant economic burden on the United States, with a total cost of asthma, including costs incurred by absenteeism and mortality, of almost $82 billion in 2013.