The fiscal burden related to opioid-related overdoses and deaths in 2016 exceeded $95 billion, according to an analysis conducted by Altarum.
Researchers analyzed data compiled by multiple federal sources, including the CDC, to create an estimate of the possible economic benefits of eliminating the opioid epidemic in 2016. Data included information on overdose deaths, healthcare and criminal justice system costs associated with the crisis, along with potential productivity gains linked to the hypothetical elimination of overdose deaths.
Researchers determined $43.2 billion of the economic burden related to the public health crisis was attributable to the loss in workforce productivity as a result of opioid-related deaths. Researchers linked an additional $12.3 billion in losses to reductions in productivity associated with non-fatal overdoses. In regards to healthcare costs, the analysis identified $12.2 billion in losses directly associated with treating overdoses and $9.2 billion in losses associated with indirect healthcare costs, such as increased treatments for diseases associated with illicit drug use. Costs associated with the criminal justice system ($7.8 billion), child and family assistance ($6.1 billion), and education efforts ($4.4 billion) make up the remainder of the economic burden.
"This quantitative analysis of the potential economic benefits from eliminating the opioid epidemic is not an exhaustive or comprehensive calculation of the harms caused by opioid use and abuse in the U.S. during 2016," wrote the authors of the analysis. "We are aware of other potentially significant costs of opioid use that could not be monetized, for example, decreased quality of life; emotional burdens of use and related to the loss of loved ones; and other disparate community impacts … and downstream impacts on the children of parents with an substance use disorder … These negative impacts would only add to the estimated economic burden reported here and are by no means less significant than those we quantify."
Researchers predicted the economic burden associated with the opioid epidemic will be even higher in 2017.
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