Chronic conditions have immense economic implications due to their extensive impacts and intervention measures. Diabetes is one of the conditions that significantly affects financial status. Markedly, the economic consequences of diabetes range from medical expenses to reduced production due to the disease’s severe outcomes, such as lower limb amputation, cardiovascular disease, and vision loss. The United States spends immense resources to cater to the medical costs of persons with diabetes. This aspect reveals the economic implications of diabetes, marking the need to observe evidence-based self-management tips to prevent the condition. In this paper, the writer will address the economic impacts of diabetes, note their effects on the community, particular population, and healthcare organization, make recommendations on additional financial analysis, and identify the potential impact of the research on healthcare economic planning.
One fundamental economic implication of diabetes is increased medical costs. This aspect affects patients and the government, as they both incur expenses to offer optimal care to persons with diabetes. For instance, the U.S. spends 25% of its healthcare costs on people with diabetes (Parker et al., 2023). This factor marks the significant economic impact of increased medical costs for this condition. Besides, Venker & Stephenson (2018) argued that persons with diabetes incur 2.6 times more medical costs than if they did not have the disease. The extreme medical cost impacts the financial statuses of persons with diabetes, complicating their livelihood. Fundamentally, the spending on insulin rose from $8 billion to $22.3 billion from 2012 to 2022 (Parker et al., 2023). The increased cost of insulin explains the economic implications of diabetes, revealing the extensive financial burden linked to the disease.
Diabetes limits individual production due to its severe outcomes, such as limb amputation, heart conditions, and vision loss. Persons with diabetes are not as productive as healthy persons due to these adverse impacts. Diabetes affects productivity in the workplace, as people with diabetes miss work, cannot work full time, and face emotional and physical stress due to low or high blood glucose (Idham, 2022). Hence, diabetes limits productivity as employees do not meet targets or maximize their input. This aspect has immense impacts on the economy and individuals’ living standards. Individuals in the final stages of diabetes are the least productive due to complications such as kidney failure, cardiovascular disease, vision loss, and limb amputation (Venker & Stephenson, 2018). Therefore, responsible agencies must enact essential countermeasures to control diabetes and counter the extreme economic implications.
As noted, the economic implications of diabetes affect the community, different demographics, and the healthcare sector. For instance, the U.S. government spends a quarter of healthcare expenses on persons with diabetes (Parker et al., 2023). This aspect marks the economic implications of diabetes on the U.S. community. On the other hand, minorities such as African Americans are significantly affected by diabetes. For instance, the American Diabetes Association (2018) revealed that Blacks with diabetes pay the highest cost of diabetes due to high uninsured cases and the disease’s prevalence in the population. On the other hand, healthcare agencies incur costs in acquiring treatment equipment and implementing relevant systems, such as telehealth (Venker & Stephenson, 2018). Hence, diabetes economically impacts the community, Blacks, and the healthcare sector.
Researchers should critique further economic impacts of diabetes, such as related job losses and hiring disparities. Based on the implications of diabetes on productivity, scholars should study the hiring process to reveal any discrepancies. Bias in recruiting diabetes people poses an economic impact on young persons with diabetes. Fundamentally, the extreme economic consequences of diabetes can help in strategic planning in the healthcare sector. The healthcare department should utilize the results to implement workable strategies that are cost-friendly. For instance, health education on diabetes self-management tips in societal factions, such as schools, trains the public on optimal lifestyle. This aspect is essential in controlling the extreme impacts of diabetes and reducing the costs linked to the final stages of diabetes. Additionally, the healthcare sector should set adequate resources to research novel diabetes countermeasures. Credible research develops practical counterstrategies that are cost-effective and optimal in diabetes management. Therefore, the paper on the economic implications of diabetes can promote strategic planning in healthcare by influencing decision-making, treatment options, care delivery, and prevention techniques.
Conclusively, diabetes has immense adverse economic implications, including high medical expenses and limited production. Persons with diabetes incur over two times more medical expenses than if they did not have the disease. On the other hand, 25% of U.S. healthcare costs cater to persons with diabetes, marking the extreme economic impacts of diabetes. Diabetes’s financial implication affects communities, specific demographics, and the healthcare system. For instance, African Americans incur the highest diabetes cost due to low insurance cases and increased diabetes prevalence in the population. The healthcare sector incurs extra resources to design interventions such as telehealth systems for persons with diabetes. Researchers should identify disparities in the hiring process, as some employers may fail to hire youths with diabetes, impacting their financial statuses. Notably, the current paper should base decision-making in the healthcare sector on developing strategies that limit resource use, such as health education on diabetes self-management.
References
American Diabetes Association. (2018). Economic costs of diabetes in the US in 2017. Diabetes care, 41(5), 917-928.
Idham, A. (2022). Impact of Diabetes and Hypertension Control on Work Performance among Employees in Malaysia. ResearchBerg Review of Science and Technology, 2(1), 1-15.
Parker, E. D., Lin, J., Mahoney, T., Ume, N., Yang, G., Gabbay, R. A., … & Bannuru, R. R. (2023). Economic costs of diabetes in the US in 2022. Diabetes Care, dci230085.
Venker, B. T., Dunn, J. P., & Stephenson, K. (2018). The rising cost of diabetes: can DiRECT tip the scales?. Obesity, 26(12), 1866-1867.
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