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Allergy & Asthma Advocate: Fall 2004
The costs of asthma and allergy The costs are related to missed work and school time, inconvenience, fees for medical visits, and costs of treatments, such as medications. The following costs are expressed as total costs to our society, but are made up of individual burdens that all asthma and allergy sufferers and their families have to bear. The personal and financial costs of asthma are substantial. Approximately 20.3 million Americans, 6.3 million of whom are under age 18, suffer from asthma. More than 14 million school days and 14.5 million work days are missed annually due to asthma. These missed days of work and school have a real cost. For example, the value of reduced productivity due to loss of school days is nearly $1.5 billion annually, and the total costs of lost productivity total $14 billion. The costs of asthma are so great because people suffering from asthma attacks cannot function normally, and the number of asthma attacks per year is very high. For example, in 2001, 12 million people experienced asthma attacks. These asthma attacks and the general management of asthma require a large amount of medical care:
Allergic rhinitis, or hayfever, another common allergic condition, also has large personal and financial costs for sufferers and their families. At least 35.9 people in the United States suffer from seasonal allergic rhinitis and millions of others suffer from year-round allergic rhinitis. There are approximately 16.7 million outpatient office visits every year for allergic rhinitis. In 1998, it was estimated that increased absenteeism and decreased productivity related to allergic rhinitis cost American companies more than $250 million. In 1996, the estimated total cost of allergic rhinitis, including both the indirect impact on work and school and the direct financial costs, was $6 billion. There are also other allergic conditions that affect large numbers of people and have enormous costs. These conditions include:
All of these conditions can result in lost days of school and work, decreased productivity, and large financial costs. When you are suffering from asthma and allergy, you have to deal with coughing, wheezing, chest tightness, sneezing, congestion, itchy eyes, itchy nose and other uncomfortable, sometimes dangerous, symptoms. These symptoms not only create their own discomfort but also make it difficult to function normally. In addition, these symptoms often require medical visits, hospitalizations and medications. Asthma and allergy have enormous costs to those individuals who suffer from these conditions. These costs are also shared by employers, who have less productive employees, and by society in general, that has to fill the gaps left by absent workers and provide medical care for these chronic conditions. It is very important to remember that you are not necessarily at the mercy of asthma and allergies. If you seek care for these conditions from an allergist/immunologist, you will very likely have better control over your symptoms, and reduced overall personal and financial costs. If, for example, your child’s asthma were better controlled, he or she would be able to attend school more regularly and have improved grades and self-esteem. If your allergic rhinitis were better controlled, you would also miss fewer days of work, be more productive, and have more income available for other uses.
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© 1996-2008 · All Rights Reserved · American Academy of Allergy Asthma & Immunology |
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If you suffer from asthma and allergies, you understand the physical discomfort of such symptoms as wheezing, coughing, itching and sneezing. The suffering does not end with the symptoms however, because there are substantial personal and financial costs associated with these disorders. 
The direct monetary costs of asthma are also enormous. For example, direct costs of asthma total more than $9.4 billion every year, with inpatient hospital services representing the largest portion of this total at more than $4 billion.
More than 14 million school days and 14.5 million work days are missed annually due to asthma. These missed days of work and school have a real cost. The value of reduced productivity due to loss of school days is nearly $1.5 billion annually, and the total costs of lost productivity total $14 billion.