VIDEO: Hepatitis C burden could wallop Medicare

BOSTON – The graying of America will add at least 1 million more patients with chronic hepatitis C virus infection into the Medicare system between 2010 and 2024.

“If all of these patients were treated with an all-oral high efficacy regimen, however, it could save 33,922 lives and increase the number of years lived by an estimated 200,000 years,” study author David Rein, Ph.D., reported at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases.

The study is the first to estimate the number of chronically infected HCV patients in the Medicare system, and the data suggest that as of 2009, there were already 407,786 such patients in the system.

Most patients (68%) were diagnosed with chronic disease only, 24% were diagnosed with some form of end-stage liver disease, and 8% died in 2009.

Co-morbities were commona among the cohort, with 64% having at least one other chronic condition, such as diabetes, renal disease, alcohol/substance abuse, or mental health conditions.

The annual cost of their HCV treatment in 2009 was $2.7 billion in 2014 dollars.

Over the next 10 years, that number could rise to $6.7 billion if these patients aren’t treated, Dr. Rein, a principal research scientist in the Atlanta office of NORC at the University of Chicago, said.

To hear more about this study and whether Medicare can afford this level of care, click here to hear our interview with Dr. Rein.

The study was funded by an unrestricted research grant from Gilead Sciences. Dr. Rein and his co-authors reported having no conflicting interests.

[email protected]

BOSTON – The graying of America will add at least 1 million more patients with chronic hepatitis C virus infection into the Medicare system between 2010 and 2024.

“If all of these patients were treated with an all-oral high efficacy regimen, however, it could save 33,922 lives and increase the number of years lived by an estimated 200,000 years,” study author David Rein, Ph.D., reported at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases.

The study is the first to estimate the number of chronically infected HCV patients in the Medicare system, and the data suggest that as of 2009, there were already 407,786 such patients in the system.

Most patients (68%) were diagnosed with chronic disease only, 24% were diagnosed with some form of end-stage liver disease, and 8% died in 2009.

Co-morbities were commona among the cohort, with 64% having at least one other chronic condition, such as diabetes, renal disease, alcohol/substance abuse, or mental health conditions.

The annual cost of their HCV treatment in 2009 was $2.7 billion in 2014 dollars.

Over the next 10 years, that number could rise to $6.7 billion if these patients aren’t treated, Dr. Rein, a principal research scientist in the Atlanta office of NORC at the University of Chicago, said.

To hear more about this study and whether Medicare can afford this level of care, click here to hear our interview with Dr. Rein.

The study was funded by an unrestricted research grant from Gilead Sciences. Dr. Rein and his co-authors reported having no conflicting interests.

[email protected]

BOSTON – The graying of America will add at least 1 million more patients with chronic hepatitis C virus infection into the Medicare system between 2010 and 2024.

“If all of these patients were treated with an all-oral high efficacy regimen, however, it could save 33,922 lives and increase the number of years lived by an estimated 200,000 years,” study author David Rein, Ph.D., reported at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases.

The study is the first to estimate the number of chronically infected HCV patients in the Medicare system, and the data suggest that as of 2009, there were already 407,786 such patients in the system.

Most patients (68%) were diagnosed with chronic disease only, 24% were diagnosed with some form of end-stage liver disease, and 8% died in 2009.

Co-morbities were commona among the cohort, with 64% having at least one other chronic condition, such as diabetes, renal disease, alcohol/substance abuse, or mental health conditions.

The annual cost of their HCV treatment in 2009 was $2.7 billion in 2014 dollars.

Over the next 10 years, that number could rise to $6.7 billion if these patients aren’t treated, Dr. Rein, a principal research scientist in the Atlanta office of NORC at the University of Chicago, said.

To hear more about this study and whether Medicare can afford this level of care, click here to hear our interview with Dr. Rein.

The study was funded by an unrestricted research grant from Gilead Sciences. Dr. Rein and his co-authors reported having no conflicting interests.

[email protected]