MS has an economic cost of $85.4 billion, study says

The economic cost of multiple sclerosis, or MS, was about $85.4 billion in the U.S. in 2019, according to research published Wednesday in the online issue of Neurology.

Driving the news: According to the report, MS has a direct medical cost of $63.3 billion and indirect and non-medical costs of $22.1 billion.

• Retail prescription medication (54%), clinic administered drugs (12%), medication and administration and outpatient care (9%) were the three largest components of the direct costs.
• Lost earnings due to premature death, lost productivity and absenteeism were the largest components of indirect costs.
• Researchers also found the average annual excess medical costs per person with MS were about $65,600.