Cost
The cost of a flu season in lives lost, medical expenses and economic impact can be severe.
- "In the United States of America, for example, recent estimates put the cost of influenza epidemics to the economy at US$ 71-167 billion per year."
A recent study estimated that in the United States, annual influenza epidemics result in approximately 600,000 life-years lost, 3 million hospitalized days, and 30 million outpatient visits, resulting in medical costs of $10 billion annually. According to this study, lost earnings due to illness and loss of life amounted to over $15 billion annually and the total economic burden of annual influenza epidemics amounts to over $80 billion. Also, in the US the flu season usually accounts for 200,000 hospitalizations and 41,000 deaths. Because the mortality rate of the H1N1 "swine flu" is lower than common flu strains, this number was actually lower in 2009.
Read more about this topic: Flu Season
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