Alcohol cost calculator: An analysis of return on investment


Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

4102.0: Tuesday, December 13, 2005 - 12:53 PM

Abstract #116625

Alcohol cost calculator: An analysis of return on investment

Delia Olufokunbi, PhD, Center for Health Service Research & Policy, George Washington University Medical Center, 2021 K Street, NW, Suite 800, Washington, DC 20006, 202-530-2302, olufokun@gwu.edu

Alcohol problems cost American businesses $26 billion in health care costs and 51 million extra sick days each year. However, few businesses recognize the impact of these problems in their own workplaces. This presentation will demonstrate a concrete, research-based tool that participants can use to quantify the prevalence of problem drinking among workers and their families, the health care and productivity costs associated with problem drinking, and the return on investment for alcohol treatment.

This easy-to-use online tool computes the financial and social costs of untreated alcohol problems to individual companies and identifies the cost benefits of providing access comprehensive treatment. This tool can be used by businesses interested in understanding the impact of alcohol problems to their workforce and what they can do to address the problem. The tool is also useful to advocates interested in encouraging businesses to provide comprehensive treatment benefits for individuals with alcohol use problems.

Learning Objectives:

At the conclusion of this presentation, participants will be able to use the Alcohol Cost Calculator to determine

the number of employees in a company who are problem drinkers; the number and financial cost of work days missed due to sickness, injury, and absence because of problem drinking every year; the number of work days of lowered productivity associated with alcohol; the impact of problem drinking in terms of co-morbid mental illness, other drug use, driving under the influence, and committing or being a victim of domestic violence; how much a company pays for alcohol-related healthcare; and the return on investment for providing alcohol treatment.

Keywords: Alcohol Problems, Cost-Effectiveness

Related Web page: www.ensuringsolutions.org

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

I wish to disclose that I have NO financial interests or other relationship with the manufactures of commercial products, suppliers of commercial services or commercial supporters.

Recorded presentation

Technology in Surveillance, Decision Making, Costing and Disease Impact Analysis

The 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition (December 10-14, 2005) of APHA