Sunday, December 3, 2017

How much does it cost to have a stroke?


The cost of having a stroke is variable. For instance, in the United States, stroke can easily bankrupt you-- or not, depending on your insurance, your wealth, and the combination of both. In Europe it is much less of a burden. Or, lets say, the burden is more shared. But it does not matter where you are, almost always there are extra expenses along with less income.

But the data is scarce. You'd think the amount having a stroke might cost someone would be well studied. It is not. At least not lately (most studies were done in the 90s). There is a lot of research on the macro issue; how much of a burden it is on a country or a national health care system. But not much on the individual's burden. The best estimate is this: 

The long-term costs of stroke The lifetime cost of a first stroke occurring in 1990 (not including lost wages) was estimated to be $228,030 ($462,126 today, adjusted for inflation) for an ischemic (block) stroke. There is one more recent study that suggests the amount is $140,048 ($283,821.68 today). In Germany the cost estimate is 43,129 EUR.

But both of these estimates seem low. 

Finally, there is no way to estimate the cost. How do you estimate what might have been?

If you are struggling with the issue of expenses after stroke-- at least here in the US, there is a resource that may help.

2 comments:

oc1dean said...

I'm losing $50,000 a year in salary due to having to find and move to a new job. Worth it though, triggered my divorce. No clue on my medical costs.

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