Estimates of economic costs of alcohol and drug abuse and mental illness, 1985 and 1988.
- 1 May 1991
- journal article
- Vol. 106 (3) , 280-92
Abstract
The high prevalence of alcohol and drug abuse and mental illness imposes a substantial financial burden on those affected and on society. The authors present estimates of the economic costs from these causes for 1985 and 1988, based on current and reliable data available from national surveys and the use of new costing methodology. The total losses to the economy related to alcohol and drug abuse and mental illness for 1988 are estimated at $273.3 billion. The estimate includes $85.8 billion for alcohol abuse, $58.3 billion for drug abuse, and $129.3 billion for mental illness. The total estimated costs for 1985, $218.1 billion, include $51.4 billion for direct treatment and support costs; $80.8 billion for morbidity costs, the value of reduced or lost productivity; $35.8 billion for mortality costs, the value of foregone future productivity for the 140,593 premature deaths associated with these disorders, based on a 6 percent discount rate and including an imputed value for housekeeping services; and $47.5 billion in other related costs, including the costs of crime, motor vehicle crashes, fire destruction, and the value of productivity losses for victims of crime, incarceration, crime careers, and caregiver services. The cost of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome associated with drug abuse is estimated at $1 billion, and the cost of fetal alcohol syndrome is estimated at $1.6 billion. The estimates may be considered lower limits of the true costs to society of alcohol and drug abuse and mental illness in the United States.This publication has 11 references indexed in Scilit:
- Comorbidity of mental disorders with alcohol and other drug abuse. Results from the Epidemiologic Catchment Area (ECA) Study.1990
- One-Month Prevalence of Mental Disorders in the United StatesArchives of General Psychiatry, 1988
- Associations among major psychiatric diagnoses.Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 1988
- Cost model for baccalaureate nursing educationJournal of Professional Nursing, 1987
- Drinking Patterns and Drinking Problems in 1984: Results from a General Population SurveyAlcohol, Clinical and Experimental Research, 1987
- Estimates of the direct and indirect costs of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome in the United States, 1985, 1986, and 1991.1987
- US medical school finances.1986
- The economic costs of illness: A replication and update1985
- Associations among Alcoholism, Drug Abuse, and Antisocial Personality: A Review of LiteraturePsychological Reports, 1984
- The economic cost of illness revisited.1976