Health, Absence, Disability, and Presenteeism Cost Estimates of Certain Physical and Mental Health Conditions Affecting U.S. Employers

Ron Z. Goetzel, Stacey R. Long, Ronald J. Ozminkowski, Kevin Hawkins, Shaohung Wang, Wendy Lynch

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

772 Scopus citations

Abstract

Evidence about the total cost of health, absence, short-term disability, and productivity losses was synthesized for 10 health conditions. Cost estimates from a large medical/absence database were combined with findings from several published productivity surveys. Ranges of condition prevalence and associated absenteeism and presenteeism (on-the-job-productivity) losses were used to estimate condition-related costs. Based on average impairment and prevalence estimates, the overall economic burden of illness was highest for hypertension ($392 per eligible employee per year), heart disease ($368), depression and other mental illnesses ($348), and arthritis ($327). Presenteeism costs were higher than medical costs in most cases, and represented 18% to 60% of all costs for the 10 conditions. Caution is advised when interpreting any particular source of data, and the need for standardization in future research is noted.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)398-412
Number of pages15
JournalJournal of occupational and environmental medicine
Volume46
Issue number4
DOIs
StatePublished - Apr 2004
Externally publishedYes

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health

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