ADA: Short Term Economic Impact of Weight Change Among Patients with Type 2 Diab

A 1 percent weight loss was associated with a 5.6 percent decrease in health care costs, or approximately $408. The study, which included data gathered from an HMO claims database between 1997 – 2005, showed that study participants with diabetes who experienced 1 percent weight loss decreased their average health care costs by 3.6 percent over the 12 months following the weight loss, or approximately $256. Results were even more significant among patients considered obese (BMI greater than or equal to 30). For this group, a 1 percent weight loss was associated with a 5.6 percent decrease in health care costs, or approximately $408.

"The results of this short-term study suggest the benefits weight loss can have beyond disease management and overall health among people with type 2 diabetes. There’s a dollars and cents incentive for patients and the entire health care system to devote resources to weight loss and disease management," said study author E.Q. Wu, PhD, senior associate, Health Economics and Outcomes Practice for Analysis Group, Inc., a national economics consulting firm. "The study also reinforces the need for patients with diabetes to have alternatives that do not cause weight gain, which can be one of the most challenging side effects associated with many treatment options for people with type 2 diabetes."

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, chronic diseases, including diabetes and obesity, account for more than 75 percent of the nation’s health care spending. Total annual health care spending in the U.S. rose to 1.9 trillion dollars in 2004, according to the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services. While advances have been made in the diagnosis and treatment of diabetes, the ADA lists diabetes as the fifth leading cause of death by disease in the United States, resulting in 2002 costs of approximately $132 billion in direct and indirect medical expenses.

An estimated 30 percent of U.S. adults aged 20 years and older — over 60 million people — are obese(iii) and an estimated 194 million adults worldwide(iv) and almost 21 million in the United States(v) have diabetes. Approximately 90 to 95 percent of those affected have type 2 diabetes, a condition characterized by progressive failure of beta cells to produce appropriate levels of insulin, coupled with the body’s inability to respond normally to insulin.(vi) Ninety percent of people with type 2 diabetes are considered overweight,(vii) and type 2 diabetes occurs at an earlier age in overweight people.(viii,ix)

In the study, 458 patients with type 2 diabetes who were on antidiabetic therapy were identified through Fallon Community Health Plan, a third-party payer. Data were gathered on the patients’ baseline weight and a second weight measurement taken approximately six months later. The study assessed the impact of weight change on the total health care costs over one year following the second weight measure. Weight change was measured as the percent difference from the baseline weight measurement.

Presented at the 66th Annual Scientific Sessions of the American Diabetes Association (ADA) in Washington, DC.

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FACT:
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, An estimated 30 percent of U.S. adults aged 20 years and older — over 60 million people — are obese and an estimated 194 million adults worldwide(iv) and almost 21 million in the United States(v) have diabetes. Approximately 90 to 95 percent of those affected have type 2 diabetes, a condition characterized by progressive failure of beta cells to produce appropriate levels of insulin, coupled with the body’s inability to respond normally to insulin.(vi) Ninety percent of people with type 2 diabetes are considered overweight, and type 2 diabetes occurs at an earlier age in overweight people.