Economic burden due to COVID-19 in a Colombian Caribbean state, 2020 and 2021

Carga económica asociada al COVID-19 en un departamento del Caribe colombiano, 2020 e 2021

Abstract

Objective:

To estimate the economic burden associated with COVID-19 in Córdoba, Colombia, 2020 and 2021.

Methods:

Economic burden study. Direct costs were analyzed from the third-party payer perspective using healthcare administrative databases and interviews from a cohort of confirmed COVID-19 cases from Córdoba. Costing aggregation was performed by the bottom-up method. Indirect costs were estimated using the productivity loss approach. Contrast tests and statistical models were estimated at 5% significance.

Results:

We studied 1,800 COVID-19 cases. The average economic cost of COVID-19 per episode was estimated at US$ 2,519 (95%CI 1,980;3,047). The direct medical cost component accounted for 92.9% of the total; out-of-pocket and indirect costs accounted for 2% and 5.1%, respectively.

Conclusion:

COVID-19 economic cost was mainly due to direct medical costs. This study provided evidence of the economic burden faced by households due to COVID-19, with the most vulnerable households bearing much of the burden on their income.

Keywords:
Health Care Costs; Cost of Illness; Economic Burden; COVID-19

Study contributions

Main results

The mean economic cost of COVID-19 per episode was estimated in US$ 2,519 (95%CI 1,980;3,047). The direct medical cost component accounted for 92.9% of the total; direct expenses and indirect costs accounted for, 2% and 5.1%, respectively.

Implications for services

Estimating the costs of a disease is necessary for any healthcare system, especially its own expenses and indirect costs. These are the main inputs for evaluating the cost-effectiveness of new health interventions.

Perspectives

In future analyses it will be important to estimate the subsequent costs due to impairments caused by long COVID-19, in order to complete the estimate of the economic burden of this disease.