Costs Related to Arthritis, Similar Conditions Increased to $128B in 2003, CDC Says

The cost of arthritis and related conditions in the U.S. increased to $128 billion in 2003, the most recent year for which data were available, and the amount will continue to increase as the population becomes older and heavier, CDC said on Thursday, the AP/Long Island Newsday reports. According to CDC, the $128 billion in costs included $80.8 billion in direct costs, such as medical expenses, and $47 billion in indirect costs, such as lost wages. The $128 billion in costs represented a 48% increase from $86.2 billion in 1997, in large part because federal surveys identified nine million more cases of arthritis and related conditions, CDC said. CDC estimated that 46.1 million residents received treatment for arthritis and related conditions in 2003 and that 29.5 million of them lost wages. CDC said eight million additional residents likely will develop arthritis and related conditions from 2005 through 2015 and recommended broader use of self-management programs, which teach patients to manage their pain and continue to work with the condition, to help reduce costs (Yee, AP/Long Island Newsday, 1/12).