The Surgeon General's Call To Action To Prevent and Decrease Overweight and Obesity
Economic Consequences
Overweight and obesity and their associated health problems have substantial economic
consequences for the U.S. health care system. The increasing prevalence of overweight
and obesity is associated with both direct and indirect costs. Direct health care costs refer
to preventive, diagnostic, and treatment services related to overweight and obesity (for
example, physician visits and hospital and nursing home care). Indirect costs refer to the
value of wages lost by people unable to work because of illness or disability, as well as
the value of future earnings lost by premature death.27
In 1995, the total (direct and indirect) costs attributable to obesity amounted to an
estimated $99 billion.27 In 2000, the total cost of obesity was estimated to be $117 billion ($61 billion direct and $56 billion indirect).28 Most of the cost associated with obesity is due to type 2 diabetes, coronary heart disease, and hypertension.29
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Last revised: January 11, 2007
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