Diagnosed diabetes cost the United States an estimated $245 billion in 2012, according to a new analysis from the American Diabetes Association (ADA).

The report, an update to the ADA’s last cost report issued in 2007, examined health-resource utilization and lost productivity due to the condition as well as actual direct and indirect costs incurred by people with diabetes in the United States.

The findings, to be published in the April issue of Diabetes Care, were released at a press briefing on Capitol Hill that was held in conjunction with the ADA’s “Call to Congress” lobbying day.

According to the report, approximately 22.3 million people - about 7% of the US population - were living with diabetes in 2012, an increase of nearly 5 million since 2007.

“We have an incredible epidemic of diabetes that is driving healthcare expenditures excessively… Unless we do something to stop diabetes, the economic cost will continue to rise,” ADA Chief Scientific and Medical Officer Robert E. Ratner, MD, said at the briefing.

The $245 billion figure comprises $176 in direct medical costs, including hospital and emergency care, physician visits, and medications, and $69 billion in indirect costs, including absenteeism, lost productivity, and premature mortality.

The total represents a 41% increase from the ADA’s last estimate of $174 billion in 2007, Dr. Ratner said.

The study found that, after adjustment for age and sex, annual health expenditures for people with diabetes are 2.3 times greater than for those without, $13,741 vs $5853, suggesting that diabetes is responsible for $7888 in excess costs per year.

According to Dr. Ratner, the increased prevalence of diabetes is the main reason for the greater economic burden, rather than an increase in medical costs per person, which did not exceed the rate of medical inflation. While total overall per capita health costs in the United States rose by 24%, the rise among those with diabetes was just 19% per person.

The absolute cost of inpatient diabetes-related hospital care was the largest contributor to direct medical costs in 2012, at $76 billion, compared with $58 billion in 2007. However, on a good note, Dr. Ratner said inpatient costs as a proportion of total direct medical costs actually dropped, from 50% to just 43% of the total.

“We appear to be avoiding the costs of hospitalizations and improving less expensive outpatient management,” he observed.

Senator Susan Collins (R-Maine), cochair of the Senate diabetes caucus, also spoke at the briefing, noting that one third of Americans older than 65 years have been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes and half are at risk for it.

And, she said, approximately 1 in 3 Medicare dollars is spent on diabetes. “When you look at the impact of diabetes, it’s evident that if we could prevent the disease and come up with better treatments, we could have a major impact not only on peoples’ lives, but also on the Medicare and Medicaid budgets.”

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WASHINGTON, DC