Healthcare costs of morbidly obese adults 81% greater than normal-weight adults

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Thursday, February 10, 2005 1:40 pm Email this article
The healthcare costs for morbidly obese adults in the U.S., that is those with a body mass index (BMI) of 40 or more, are 81 percent greater than normal-weight adults (BMI 18.5-24.9), 65 percent greater than overweight adults (BMI 25-29.9), and 47 percent greater than adults with class I obesity (BMI 30-34.9) according to a new study from the University of Cincinnati and the Cincinnati Veterans Affairs Medical Center.

The additional costs were the results of spending more for office-based visits, outpatient hospital care, in-patient care, and prescription drugs.

Morbidly obese spent $11 billion in 2000

The health care costs associated with being morbidly obese exceeded $11 billion in 2000.

Subjects: 16,262 U.S. adults

The study analyzed data from 16,262 U.S. adults.

REFERENCE

Arterburn D, Maciejewski M, Tsevat J. Impact of morbid obesity on medical expenditures in adults. Int J Obes Relat Metab Disord. 2005 Feb 1.

AUTHOR’S CORRESPONDENCE

Health Services Research and Development
Cincinnati Veterans Affairs Medical Center
Cincinnati, OH, USA

Section of Outcomes Research, Division of General Internal Medicine
Department of Internal Medicine
University of Cincinnati Medical Center
Cincinnati, OH, USA

Institute for Health Policy and Health Services Research
University of Cincinnati
Cincinnati, OH, USA

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