Economic burden of pneumonia in an employed population

Objective: To estimate the overall economic burden of pneumonia from an emp loyer perspective. Methods: The annual, per capita cost of pneumonia was determined for benefi ciaries of a major employer by analyzing medical, pharmaceutical, and disab ility claims data. The incremental costs of 4036 patients with a diagnosis of pneumonia identified in a health claims database of a national Fortune 1 00 company were compared with a 10% random sample of beneficiaries in the e mployer overall population. Results: Total annual, per capita, employer costs were approximately 5 time s higher for patients with pneumonia ($11544) than among typical beneficiar ies in the employer overall population ($2368). The increases in costs were for all components (eg, medical care, prescription drug, disability, and p articularly for inpatient services). A small proportion (10%) of pneumonia patients (almost all of whom were hospitalized) accounted for most (59%) of the costs. Conclusions: Patients with pneumonia present an important financial burden to employers. These patients use more medical care services, particularly i npatient services, than the average beneficiary in the employer overall pop ulation. In addition to direct health care costs related to medical utiliza tion and the use of prescription drugs, indirect costs due to disability an d absenteeism also contribute to the high cost of pneumonia to an employer.