Productivity cost model of the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis with abatacept.
BACKGROUND
The cost of the biological drug abatacept may be partly offset by reductions in the cost of productivity losses due to employee absences and reduced effectiveness at work because of rheumatoid arthritis (RA).


METHODS
This was a 1-year productivity cost model based on epidemiologic and economic data. The setting was private industry in the US and the primary outcome measure was the difference in the costs of lost productivity and drug treatment with and without abatacept ('cost difference').


RESULTS
The lost productivity cost of RA for a firm of 10,000 was $1.69 million, largely due to the cost of RA-related absenteeism ($1.55 million) rather than to worker displacement ($0.12 million) or care-giving for spouses with RA ($0.02 million). In the base case analysis (excluding presenteeism), 37% of the acquisition cost of abatacept was offset by reductions in the cost of RA-related productivity losses. In some industry groups (Utilities and Finance), and in models that included presenteeism, reductions in lost productivity costs exceeded the abatacept cost.


CONCLUSIONS
Much of the acquisition cost of abatacept may be offset by reductions in the cost of productivity losses due to RA. Abatacept treatment could be cost saving in some industry groups.
Burton
Wayne N
WN
University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA.
Morrison
Alan
A
Yuan
Yong
Y
Li
Tracy
T
Marioni
Riccardo E
RE
Maclean
Ross
R
D000069594:Abatacept; D000041:Absenteeism; D018501:Antirheumatic Agents / Q000191:economics* / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001172:Arthritis, Rheumatoid / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000191:economics*; D017028:Caregivers / Q000191:economics; D003365:Costs and Cost Analysis; D004526:Efficiency; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D018796:Immunoconjugates / Q000191:economics* / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D008297:Male; D017059:Models, Econometric; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D013997:Time Factors; D014481:United States
D018501:Antirheumatic Agents; D018796:Immunoconjugates; D000069594:Abatacept