Costs attributable to osteoarthritis
MacLean, C.H.; Knight, K.; Paulus, H.; Brook, R.H.; Shekelle, P.G.
Journal of Rheumatology 25(11): 2213-2218
1998
ISSN/ISBN: 0315-162X PMID: 9818666 Document Number: 490694
Objective. To estimate charges attributable to osteoarthritis (OA) in a managed care organization. Methods. Longitudinal study based on insurance claims incurred and filed between 1991 and 1993 in a national managed care organization. Patients with claims for OA were randomly sampled to yield 20,000 study subjects. Charges per person-year were determined for these patients and compared to those of comparison subjects matched for age, sex, and insurance plan without claims for OA. Results. Total charges per patient-year adjusted to 1993 dollars for patients with OA <65 and >65 years of age were dollar sign5,294 and dollar sign5,704, respectively, while charges for controls were dollar sign2,467 and dollar sign3,741, respectively. Thus, charges due to OA were dollar sign2,827 and dollar sign1,963, accounting for 5% of total plan charges. Conclusion. Patients with symptomatic OA incur charges for medical care at about twice the rate of plan enrollees without claims for OA and account for a substantial proportion of total charges in a managed care plan.