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. 2019 May 13;3(9):e10192.
doi: 10.1002/jbm4.10192. eCollection 2019 Sep.

Healthcare Policy Changes in Osteoporosis Can Improve Outcomes and Reduce Costs in the United States

E Michael Lewiecki  1 , Jesse D Ortendahl  2 , Jacqueline Vanderpuye-Orgle  3 , Andreas Grauer  3 , Jorge Arellano  3 , Jeffrey Lemay  3 , Amanda L Harmon  2 , Michael S Broder  2 , Andrea J Singer  4
Affiliations

Healthcare Policy Changes in Osteoporosis Can Improve Outcomes and Reduce Costs in the United States

E Michael Lewiecki et al. JBMR Plus. .

Abstract

In the United States, osteoporosis affects over 10 million adults, has high societal costs ($22 billion in 2008), and is currently being underdiagnosed and undertreated. Given an aging population, this burden is expected to rise. We projected the fracture burden in US women by modeling the expected demographic shift as well as potential policy changes. With the anticipated population aging and growth, annual fractures are projected to increase from 1.9 million to 3.2 million (68%), from 2018 to 2040, with related costs rising from $57 billion to over $95 billion. Policy-driven expansion of case finding and treatment of at-risk women could lower this burden, preventing 6.1 million fractures over the next 22 years while reducing payer costs by $29 billion and societal costs by $55 billion. Increasing use of osteoporosis-related interventions can reduce fractures and result in substantial cost-savings, a rare and fortunate combination given the current landscape in healthcare policy. © 2019 The Authors. JBMR Plus published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of American Society for Bone and Mineral Research.

Keywords: FRACTURE PREVENTION; FRACTURE RISK ASSESSMENT; GENERAL POPULATION STUDIES; HEALTH ECONOMICS; OSTEOPOROSIS.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Model schematic
Figure 2
Figure 2
Fractures by site from 2018 to 2040 with increased case finding and treatment. notes. DXA = dual‐energy X‐ray absorptiometry; M = millions
Figure 3
Figure 3
Direct and indirect costs from 2018 to 2040 with increased case finding and treatment. DXA = dual‐energy X‐ray absorptiometry; B = billions
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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