Diabetes is Costly
Evidence-based articles by L. Jones, RN, examining medical and nursing approaches to insulin resistance and reversal processes.
How Much Does it Cost to Have Diabetes?
Let’s take a minute to evaluate how much type 2 diabetes is costing you. It is often a staggering financial burden. A non-complex case of diabetes may involve buying insulin, blood glucose monitoring, and regular doctor visits, which quickly adds up. The progressive nature of the disease often leads to severe, life-altering complications, with astronomical costs.
At the most basic level, managing diabetes involves insulin therapy, blood glucose monitoring, and routine physician care. Even without complications, the cost is substantial.
According to the American Diabetes Association (ADA), the average cost of insulin for people with type 1 or insulin-dependent type 2 diabetes can range from $3,200 to over $6,000 annually, depending on the formulation and insurance coverage (ADA, 2023). This recently changed with new regulations on insulin pricing.
A glucometer typically costs $30–$70, while test strips and lancets add another $1,000–$3,000 per year (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC], 2022). Continuous glucose monitoring systems can be even more costly, as much as $4,600 per year without insurance.
Regular visits with a primary care provider and an endocrinology specialist may cost $2,000 to $4,000 annually, even with insurance (Yamey et al., 2020).
Many patients are prescribed oral anti-diabetic medications. The most expensive (and likely most effective) class is the GLP-1 receptor agonists, which can cost $500–$1,000 per month (Puckrein et al., 2021).
The Basic Costs
Total average cost for uncomplicated diabetes: approximately $16,000 per year.
When The Cost Becomes Astronomical
Unmanaged diabetes progresses and worsens over time, and often leads to further complications.
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Kidney Failure and Dialysis
Diabetes is the leading cause of kidney failure in the United States. In end-stage renal disease (ESRD), your kidneys are no longer able to function, and to survive, you must go to dialysis treatments three times per week.
Dialysis treatment averages $90,000–$100,000 per year, and usually takes three to four hours per treatment. (United States Renal Data System [USRDS], 2022).
Essentially, you spend 12-16 hours per week hooked up to a machine, and missing an appointment will often land you in the hospital.
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Amputations
There are over 100,000 diabetes-related lower limb amputations in the U.S each year. (CDC, 2022).
A single amputation may cost $30,000–$70,000. That is just the cost of the surgery, and does not include rehabilitation, work hours and wages lost, prosthetics, or long-term care.
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Emergency Department (ED) Visits and Hospitalization
Managing diabetes is hard. A simple mistake can lead to severe hypoglycemia, diabetic ketoacidosis, or infections, any of which will warrant a trip to the emergency department and potentially a hospital stay.
Each hospital admission can cost $10,000 to $30,000 (American Hospital Association [AHA], 2021).
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Cardiovascular Disease
Diabetes increases the risk of heart attacks and cardiovascular disease by two to four times (American Heart Association [AHA], 2023).
Management of heart failure or coronary artery disease can cost $20,000–$30,000 per year.
Open heart surgery may exceed $100,000. You will also need weeks or months to recover.
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Cognitive Decline
People with type 2 diabetes are 50% more likely to develop dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease (Biessels et al., 2021).
Long-term dementia care costs can exceed $60,000 annually. Strokes are twice as likely to occur in patients with diabetes and are one of the leading causes of disability in the United States (AHA, 2023).
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Cancer
There are certain cancers that are related to diabetes, obesity, and increased insulin levels.
Patients with these metabolic issues have higher rates of liver, pancreatic, colorectal, and endometrial cancers (Giovannucci et al., 2010).
Chemotherapy, radiation, and surgery can become extremely expensive.
Diabetes complications are incredibly common. Diabetes complications can result in permanent disabilities, difficulty with mobility, loss of independence and freedom, chronic pain, crippling medical bills, and lost income. The costs quickly become astronomical. What if I told you it didn’t have to be this way?
A Better Option: The Reversal Project
Type II diabetes is always preventable, and always reversible. No medication is necessary. You can lower your blood sugar and insulin resistance with diet and lifestyle changes. The Reversal Project is here to provide education rooted in current science and best practice.
We work with patients, primary care providers, and endocrinologists to implement an evidence base lifestyle intervention. This includes tailored nutrition and activity plans, coaching and support from experts, and access to a community of health-driven patients.
The best part: The Reversal Project does this for just a fraction of the cost of your diabetes care.
You can spend your life hours checking your blood sugar, giving yourself medication after medication, and waiting for the next diabetes complication to strike. Or… You could reverse it.
A Better Option: The Reversal Project
References
American Diabetes Association. (2023). Economic costs of diabetes in the U.S. in 2022. https://diabetes.org/about-us/statistics/cost-diabetes
American Heart Association. (2023). Diabetes and cardiovascular disease. https://www.heart.org
Anderson, R. J., Freedland, K. E., Clouse, R. E., & Lustman, P. J. (2001). The prevalence of comorbid depression in adults with diabetes: A meta-analysis. Diabetes Care, 24(6), 1069–1078. https://doi.org/10.2337/diacare.24.6.1069
Biessels, G. J., Strachan, M. W., Visseren, F. L., Kappelle, L. J., & Whitmer, R. A. (2021). Dementia and cognitive decline in type 2 diabetes and prediabetic stages: Towards targeted interventions. The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology, 9(3), 246–255. https://doi.org/10.1016/S2213-8587(20)30367-4
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2022). National diabetes statistics report. https://www.cdc.gov/diabetes/data/statistics-report/index.html
Giovannucci, E., Harlan, D. M., Archer, M. C., Bergenstal, R. M., Gapstur, S. M., Habel, L. A., … & Yee, D. (2010). Diabetes and cancer: A consensus report. CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians, 60(4), 207–221. https://doi.org/10.3322/caac.20078
Puckrein, G., Egan, B. M., Howard, G., Phillips, R. L., & Chatterjee, R. (2021). Addressing therapeutic inertia in type 2 diabetes: A call to action. American Journal of Managed Care, 27(2), e36–e43. https://doi.org/10.37765/ajmc.2021.88515
United States Renal Data System. (2022). USRDS Annual Data Report: Epidemiology of kidney disease in the United States. https://usrds.org
Yamey, G., Bai, R., & Kene, R. (2020). Why the US spends so much on health care—and why it’s not better. BMJ, 371, m4023. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.m4023