Friday, April 30, 2010

How Migraines Can Waste You A Lot Of Money

By Francis Irvine

Migraine headaches can be expensive for the sufferer. But recent studies have revealed that they can also be expensive for the family of the sufferer and even the employer of the sufferer.

A person who suffers from chronic migraine headaches is often referred to as a migraineur. Migraineurs often suffer in their quality of life as they miss some of life's most important events due to their headaches. They are also likely to pay higher health care costs than non-migraineurs.

Many people have lost so much work due to migraines that their income suffers. Some people may even be passed over for advancement within the company, as employers may view people who miss work frequently as a liability.

The actual migraine-related cost to employers is very high. Migraine-related costs to employers has been estimated to be over twenty-four billion dollars each year in the United States alone. Absenteeism, worker's compensation, and short-term disability account for roughly half of that estimate.

These estimates would likely be even higher if they included "presenteeism." Presenteesim refers to the cost of lowered productivity by migrainuers who come to work with a migraine.

Outpatient care is the largest contributor to the twelve point seven billion dollars in direct costs that employers pay every year.

Outpatient care alone costs employers of migraine sufferers in the United States $6.2 billion each year. Prescription drug costs for employers of migraine sufferers are approximately $5.2 billion each year in the United States. Inpatient care and emergency room visits add to these costs.

The employer-related costs of migraine headaches is a problem not only in the United States, but overseas as well. The United Kingdom, for example, has estimated that they experience twenty-five million days each year that are lost from work or school due to migraine headaches of workers and students. The loss in productivity is such a problem that employers are encouraging preventative treatments to reduce costs over time. - 15440

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