Fact Sheet: Effectively Manage Chronic Disease

HEALTH CARE FACT SHEET

Managing Chronic Disease

Issue statement

The rapid increase in rates of chronic diseases like obesity, diabetes, congestive heart failure, asthma and their associated health problems is a major contributor to the rising cost of health care. Taking steps to prevent these conditions, or properly manage them, can improve personal health and can help keep health care affordable.

Key facts, national statistics

Adults with diabetes have heart disease death rates about 2 to 4 times higher than adults without diabetes. The risk for stroke is 2 to 4 times higher among people with diabetes. About 73 percent of adults with diabetes have blood pressure greater than or equal to 130/80 millimeters of mercury (mm Hg) or use prescription medications for hypertension. (American Diabetes Association, “National Fact Sheet,” 2000.)

People with diabetes are more susceptible to many other illnesses, and once they acquire these illnesses, often have a worse prognosis than people without diabetes. For example, they are more likely to die with pneumonia or influenza than people who do not have diabetes. (American Diabetes Association, “National Fact Sheet,” 2000.)
The total cost of diabetes in the United States is $98 billion, with about $44 billion of that in direct medical costs. (American Diabetes Association, “National Fact Sheet,” 2000.)
Diabetes can cause heart disease, stroke, blindness, kidney failure, leg and foot amputations, pregnancy complications, and deaths related to influenza and pneumonia. Diabetes affects nearly 17 million Americans, and about 5.9 million of them are unaware they have the disease. (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, ”National Diabetes Fact Sheet: General Information and National Estimates on Diabetes in the United States,” 2000.)
The average health care cost for a person with diabetes in 1997 was $10,071, compared with $2,699 for a person without diabetes. (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “National Diabetes Fact Sheet: General Information and National Estimates on Diabetes in the United States,” 2000.)
More than 17 million Americans are currently estimated to have asthma. (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, "Forecasted State-Specific Estimates of Self-Reported Asthma Prevalence,” 1998.)
In 1999, it was estimated that 24.7 million Americans have been diagnosed with asthma in their lifetime. (NationalCenter for Health Statistics. Raw Data from the National Health Interview Survey, U.S., 1997-1999. Analysis by the American Lung Association)
The prevalence of asthma increased 75 percent from 1980 to 1994. (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “Forecasted State – Specific estimates of Self-Reported Asthma Prevalence,” 1998.)
From 1982-1996, the prevalence of asthma increased by 97 percent among women, compared with 22 percent among men.(American Lung Association,” Trends in Asthma Morbidity and Mortality,” 2001.)
Asthma affects more than 4.8 million children under the age of 18. (American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine,. “ATS Update,” 1998.)
Asthma rates in children under the age of five have increased more than 160 percent from 1980-1994. (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, "Forecasted State-Specific Estimates of Self-Reported Asthma Prevalence,” 1998.)
Asthma is responsible for approximately 500,000 hospitalizations annually. (National Institutes of Health, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, “Data Fact Sheet on Asthma Statistics,” 1997.)
There were more than 1,997,000 emergency room visits for asthma in 1999. (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “Surveillance for Asthma – United States, 1980-1999,” 2002.)
There are more than 5,000 deaths from asthma annually. Direct health care costs for asthma in the United States total more than $8.1 billion annually; indirect costs (lost productivity) add another $4.6 billion for a total of $12.7 billion. Inpatient hospital services represented the largest single medical expenditure, over $3.5 billion. (American Lung Association, “Trends in Asthma Morbidity and Mortality,” 2002.)
Being overweight is a health problem for more and more Americans. Between 1998 and 1999, rates of obesity rose 6 percent nationally. In 1999, 61 percent of adults in the U.S. were overweight or obese. (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, “Surgeon General’s Call to Action to Prevent and Decrease Overweight and Obesity,” 2001.)
In 1995, the total costs attributed to obesity amounted to an estimated $99 billion. In 2000, that number rose to $117 billion. Most of the cost associated with obesity is due to type 2 diabetes, coronary heart disease and hypertension. (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, “Surgeon General’s Call to Action to Prevent and Decrease Overweight and Obesity,” 2001.)
In 1995, Medicare paid $3.4 billion for treatment of heart-failure-related illnesses. The majority of the nearly 5 million U.S. patients with heart failure are older than 65 years. As the “baby boomers” age during the next 40 years, the number of heart-failure patients older than 65 is expected to double. (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “Facts About Heart Failure in Older Adults,” 1999.)

Statements from key facts

Talk with your doctor to make sure you are eating a balanced diet and exercising regularly. Doing so can help prevent the onset of obesity, diabetes, congestive heart failure and other chronic illnesses, can help you manage a chronic condition, and will help control the rise of health care costs.

Editorial copy

We’ve all heard that Americans are too heavy. What many people may not realize, however, is that being overweight or obese – and the associated health problems, like type 2 diabetes, asthma and coronary heart disease – has a substantial impact on the cost of health care in America. Taking steps to maintain a healthy weight or lose weight can improve personal health and well-being, and can help control the cost of health care.

Between 1998 and 1999 alone, national obesity rates rose 6 percent, and in 1999, 61 percent of adults in the U.S. were overweight or obese. Between 1995 and 2000, the total costs attributed to obesity rose $18 billion, from $99 billion to $117 billion. Most of the cost associated with obesity is due to type 2 diabetes, coronary heart disease and hypertension – preventable conditions that cost billions of dollars each year.

Fortunately, there are simple things we all can do. Eating a well-balanced diet and getting at least 30 minutes of daily physical activity will help reduce weight and prevent the onset of chronic health problems. Talk with your doctor if you need help developing a plan that works for you.

Asthma is another prevalent condition that can often be improved with weight management and lifestyle changes. Some 17 million Americans suffer from asthma, and we spend over $8 billion annually to treat it. There were over 2 million E.R. visits due to asthma in 1999. There were nearly a half-million hospitalizations costing $3.5 billion. Because asthma attacks are triggered by environmental causes, like cold air, cigarette smoke, or allergens, talk with your doctor to find out how to identify the triggers, and how to avoid them. You’ll breathe easier and help keep medical costs down, too.

We all have a role to play in keeping health care affordable. And because we all pay for the rising cost of health care through increased premiums, copays, and deductibles, we all have a stake in this. Visit for more information about keepinghealth care affordable.

Marketing tie-ins

American Diabetes Month: November 2003
Diabetic Eye Disease Month: November
Great American Smokeout: November 20, 2003
Healthy Weight Week: January
National American Heart Month: February
National Cardiac Rehabilitation Week: February
National Nutrition Month: March
Save Your Vision Week: March
National Asthma and Allergy Awareness Month, March
National Pulmonary Rehabilitation Week: March
American Diabetes Alert Day: March
National Running and Fitness Week: May
National Employee Health and Fitness Day: May

Links to other existing programs and sources

Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association:

American Diabetes Association:

American Heart Association:

American Lung Association:

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:

8710.688-5031