National Medical Spending Attributable To Overweight And Obesity: How Much, And Who's Paying?

2003/01/01 by Eric Finkelstein, Ian C. Fiebelkorn, Guijing Wang · 9 citations
Medicine · Economics, Econometrics and Finance · Health Professions · #Obesity, Physical Activity, Diet #Healthcare Policy and Management #Global Health Care Issues

paper · doi:10.1377/hlthaff.w3.219

openalex publication_date 2003/01/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/29

Abstract

We use a regression framework and nationally representative data to compute aggregate overweight- and obesity-attributable medical spending for the United States and for select payers. Combined, such expenditures accounted for 9.1 percent of total annual U.S. medical expenditures in 1998 and may have been as high as dollar 78.5 billion (dollar 92.6 billion in 2002 dollars). Medicare and Medicaid finance approximately half of these costs.

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