The Economic Impact of Chronic Disease

The Economic Impact of Chronic Disease: The Case for Prevention, Early Detection and Better Management

Moderator
Ross DeVol, Chief Research Officer, Milken Institute

Speakers
Nancy Brown, CEO, American Heart Association

Neal Kaufman, Chief Medical Officer, Canary Health; Adjunct Professor of Medicine and Public Health, University of California, Los Angeles

Kristen Miranda, Senior Vice President, Strategic Partnerships and Innovation, Blue Shield of California

Hugh Waters, Health Economist and Associate Professor,
University of North Carolina Schools of Nursing and Public Health

Otis Webb Brawley, Chief Medical and Scientific Officer, Executive
Vice President, American Cancer Society

The growing burden of chronic disease is a costly threat to patients, their families and the economy. One in two adult Americans lives with at least one chronic condition such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease or dementia. Further, one in three live with two or more. The medical costs are staggering, but the drag on long-term economic growth and productivity losses associated with absenteeism and "presenteeism" for patients and informal caregivers are many times greater. Many chronic diseases are preventable. How much could we save in treatment costs and economic loss by modifying unhealthy behaviors such as smoking, excessive alcohol consumption and drug abuse? How about the obesity epidemic? How much could we save by simply eating better and exercising more? Can the movement toward a value-based care delivery system--in which payers pay providers based not on procedures--but on health and cost-related outcomes, make a difference?