Direct health care costs of patients with type 2 diabetes within a privately insured employed population, 2000 and 2005.
OBJECTIVE
To assess the incremental economic burden of privately insured patients with type 2 diabetes (T2DM) in 2000 and 2005 in the United States.


METHODS
Adults with T2DM and 24 months of continuous health plan enrollment were identified in the MarketScan databases (2000 and 2005). Control groups of persons without diabetes were selected for comparison using propensity score matching. Total adjusted health care costs were estimated using generalized linear modeling.


RESULTS
Adjusted health care costs of patients with T2DM in 2005 were 136% higher than those of the matched controls ($12,733 vs $5406, P < 0.001). Similarly, costs of patients with T2DM in 2000 were 146% higher than those of the matched controls ($12,423 vs $5058, P < 0.001). Expenditures were similar for individuals with T2DM in 2000 and 2005.


CONCLUSIONS
T2DM continues to impose a substantial economic burden to self-insured employers.
Durden
Emily D
ED
Healthcare & Science Department, Thomson Reuters, Washington, DC, USA. emily.durden@thomsonreuters.com
Alemayehu
Berhanu
B
Bouchard
Jonathan R
JR
Chu
Bong-Chul
BC
Aagren
Mark
M
D000328:Adult; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D015897:Comorbidity; D017281:Cost of Illness; D016208:Databases, Factual; D003924:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 / Q000191:economics*; D017048:Health Care Costs / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006296:Health Services / Q000191:economics* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D007348:Insurance, Health; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D017149:Private Sector; D014481:United States