STOCKHOLM, Sweden—As many as half of all rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients are forced into early retirement and must apply for disability within 10 years of disease onset; adding to the extremely high societal and economic costs of RA, according to a supplement to The European Journal of Health Economics.¹

Researchers from the Stockholm School of Economics in Sweden, from the University of Lund in Sweden, and from the Medical University of Vienna in Austria report that the highest cost in RA results from patients' having to leave the workforce early due to their disease. Specifically, the total annual economic impact of RA is ~$42 billion in Western Europe and ~$3.4 billion in Eastern Europe. Up to two thirds of these costs fall outside the healthcare sector and include productivity losses, patient out-of-pocket costs, and informal care.

The researchers also quantified the costs of disease-modifying biologic drugs and looked at the issues affecting patient access to these agents as improved access may allow patients to stay on the workforce longer, thus reducing costs.

Penny-wise, pound-foolish?

"The study highlights the significant variation in patient access to disease-modifying biologic drugs for the treatment of RA," wrote Bengt Jønsson, PhD, of the Stockholm School of Economics. "This is important because medical data have shown that early treatment with these drugs reduces inflammation and can prevent or reduce the speed of joint damage and hence the progression of affected individuals to disability." The studies also concluded that access to the new drugs in Europe is very low in a number of states and varies significantly between the EU and the US. In fact, the use of the drugs in the US was about three times higher than that of Western Europe, the study showed. Drug costs for RA have increased more than 10-fold to €10 billion and are expected to hit €15 billion by 2012, according to information cited in the new supplement.

"The costs of the drugs must be viewed within the overall cost of the disease and the benefit of these drugs over the long-term, that is in relation to their positive health impact and the savings that should eventually result from this," said Gisela Kobelt, PhD, of European Health Economics in Speracedes, France.

"Patient access to good care and treatment, including thorough follow-up examinations and access to innovative drug therapies where indicated, are critical elements that will benefit all of society," added Musculoskeletal Report European editor Josef S. Smolen, MD, professor of internal medicine and chairman at Vienna General Hospital at the University of Vienna, and chairman of the center for rheumatic diseases at Lainz Hospital Vienna in Austria.
 
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