Cost of diabetes could hit $17B a year by 2020
By Meagan Fitzpatrick, Canwest News
OTTAWA ??? The rising rates of diabetes in Canada could cost the economy as much as $17 billion by the year 2020, according to a new report that calls on the federal government to do more to ease the economic burden.
The Canadian Diabetes Association???s report, An Economic Tsunami: The Cost of Diabetes in Canada, warns that more than 20 people are diagnosed with the disease every hour of every day, and that number is expected to continue to rise over the coming years.
???Many of us will be affected, and the numbers show that by 2020 one in 10 Canadians will have diabetes,??? said Ellen Malcolmson, president and CEO of the Canadian Diabetes Association.
Using data from the Canadian National Diabetes Surveillance System and the Economic Burden of Illness report, a mathematical model was developed to determine the prevalence of diabetes now and in the future, and, the associated economic costs. Malcolmson said it???s an important tool to provide accurate Canadian statistics instead of extrapolating from U.S. data.
It is estimated that 2.5 million Canadians have diabetes and that in the next decade 3.7 million more Canadians will be diagnosed with it.
The report also notes that an estimated 700,000 people have diabetes and don???t know it.
Rising obesity rates, an aging population and changes in the ethnic mix of new immigrants are all believed to be driving the increasing rates of diabetes. Almost 80 per cent of new Canadians are from populations that are at a higher risk for diabetes, including people of South Asian, Asian, African and Hispanic descent.
The economic burden of diabetes is calculated to be about $12.2 billion next year, and the cost is expected to rise by another $4.7 billion by 2020. The direct financial burden on the health-care system includes the cost of hospitalizations, visits to general physicians and specialists, and medication. Indirect costs were calculated to include the loss of economic output due to illness, long-term disability or premature death.
???The cost is so significant when you think about it from a health-system perspective,??? said Malcolmson.
The price tag for hospitalizations and visits to doctors is expected to rise the fastest over the next 10 years and will ???severely tax??? the health-care system, the report said.
The model shows that visits to general physicians will rise to more than 14 million by 2020, visits to specialists to 9.1 million and the number of amputations performed every year due to diabetes is expected to go up to 630,000 by 2020.
The Canadian Diabetes Association is calling on the federal government to renew the Canadian Diabetes Strategy and the Aboriginal Diabetes Initiative, which expire in 2010. Aboriginal Canadians are three to five times more likely to develop Type 2 diabetes than non-aboriginal Canadians.
The national strategy was renewed in the 2005 budget and $90 million spread over five years was committed to it and $190 million was directed to the aboriginal diabetes initiative.
???It???s important to us that the strategies are renewed and enhanced,??? said Malcolmson. Her association is also looking for the federal government to increase the tax credits and deductions that are allowed for medical expenses, and the provinces will also be asked to help, she said.
People with diabetes often have to pay for medications and supplies, such as glucose testing strips, out of their own pocket and some who can???t afford the expenses then don???t manage their disease well, which leads to problems later, said Malcolmson.
By Meagan Fitzpatrick, Canwest News
OTTAWA ??? The rising rates of diabetes in Canada could cost the economy as much as $17 billion by the year 2020, according to a new report that calls on the federal government to do more to ease the economic burden.
The Canadian Diabetes Association???s report, An Economic Tsunami: The Cost of Diabetes in Canada, warns that more than 20 people are diagnosed with the disease every hour of every day, and that number is expected to continue to rise over the coming years.
???Many of us will be affected, and the numbers show that by 2020 one in 10 Canadians will have diabetes,??? said Ellen Malcolmson, president and CEO of the Canadian Diabetes Association.
Using data from the Canadian National Diabetes Surveillance System and the Economic Burden of Illness report, a mathematical model was developed to determine the prevalence of diabetes now and in the future, and, the associated economic costs. Malcolmson said it???s an important tool to provide accurate Canadian statistics instead of extrapolating from U.S. data.
It is estimated that 2.5 million Canadians have diabetes and that in the next decade 3.7 million more Canadians will be diagnosed with it.
The report also notes that an estimated 700,000 people have diabetes and don???t know it.
Rising obesity rates, an aging population and changes in the ethnic mix of new immigrants are all believed to be driving the increasing rates of diabetes. Almost 80 per cent of new Canadians are from populations that are at a higher risk for diabetes, including people of South Asian, Asian, African and Hispanic descent.
The economic burden of diabetes is calculated to be about $12.2 billion next year, and the cost is expected to rise by another $4.7 billion by 2020. The direct financial burden on the health-care system includes the cost of hospitalizations, visits to general physicians and specialists, and medication. Indirect costs were calculated to include the loss of economic output due to illness, long-term disability or premature death.
???The cost is so significant when you think about it from a health-system perspective,??? said Malcolmson.
The price tag for hospitalizations and visits to doctors is expected to rise the fastest over the next 10 years and will ???severely tax??? the health-care system, the report said.
The model shows that visits to general physicians will rise to more than 14 million by 2020, visits to specialists to 9.1 million and the number of amputations performed every year due to diabetes is expected to go up to 630,000 by 2020.
The Canadian Diabetes Association is calling on the federal government to renew the Canadian Diabetes Strategy and the Aboriginal Diabetes Initiative, which expire in 2010. Aboriginal Canadians are three to five times more likely to develop Type 2 diabetes than non-aboriginal Canadians.
The national strategy was renewed in the 2005 budget and $90 million spread over five years was committed to it and $190 million was directed to the aboriginal diabetes initiative.
???It???s important to us that the strategies are renewed and enhanced,??? said Malcolmson. Her association is also looking for the federal government to increase the tax credits and deductions that are allowed for medical expenses, and the provinces will also be asked to help, she said.
People with diabetes often have to pay for medications and supplies, such as glucose testing strips, out of their own pocket and some who can???t afford the expenses then don???t manage their disease well, which leads to problems later, said Malcolmson.
