People who are obese spend almost $1,500 more each year on health care -- about 41 percent more than an average-weight person. Beyond those costs are the disability and early deaths caused by obesity, according to Dr. Thomas R. Frieden, director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.  That adds up to just over 9% of the total healthcare bill in the US, or $147 billion each year in direct medical costs.  The large majority of this increase in cost is for prescription medication   Normal-weight persons spend an average of about $700 a year on prescription drugs, but among those who are obese the cost rises to about $1,300 a year, an 80 percent increase.

If Americans continue to pack on the pounds, obesity will cost the US about $344 billion in medical-related expenses by 2018, eating up about 21% of health-care spending, says the first analysis to estimate the future medical costs of excess weight.

The cost to Medicare/Medicaid programs around the country is estimated to increase approximately $1,700 per year.  For people on Medicare, average expenses for a normal-weight person average about $4,700 a year, while costs for an obese person range about $6,400 annually.  The tax on the average American grows as American’s waist lines grow.

The increase in medical costs are not just for the treatment of obesity, but include the costs related to the increase of chronic diseases linked to poor diet and obesity.   Overall, the United States spends about $1.8 trillion a year in medical costs associated with chronic diseases such as diabetes, heart disease and cancer, and all three are linked to smoking and obesity, the nation's two largest risk factors, according to the America's Health Rankings report.

The cost of the obesity epidemic in America is more than just dollars and cents.  The mental and emotional costs are incalculable, but just as real to the overweight patient.  Society stills looks at the obese person as being lazy, having low self-control, or low self-esteem.  Socially, children tend to exclude over weight classmates from activities and obese school children are more prone to bullying.  Overweight teens have a harder time establishing personal relationships, which has been linked to an increase in illegal drug use and teen suicide rates.

Obesity can reduce life expectancy from 5 to 12 years, depending on the amount of extra weight and other factors.  This equates to the same shortening of life that a life time of smoking will induce.  Increased mortality is only a small part of the effect of obesity.    The conditions of morbidity associated with obesity include heart disease, diabetes, musculoskeletal problems, pregnancy complications, gastric complaints, and a host of other complications.

The financial losses associated with obesity are more than just medical.  From an employer’s perspective, it makes perfect business sense to exclude the obese job seeker from the payroll.  Increased absenteeism, increased medical costs, and in some cases the cost of modifying the workplace to accommodate the obese employee make it an easy decision to hire someone else.  The ADA provides some relief for the obese employee, but not in every case.

As a healthcare provider in private practice, the increase in healthcare costs needs to be appreciated, in order to effectively help the overweight patient.  By educating your obese patients on the additional costs that they will incur over their lifetime, you may be able to persuade them to take control of their weight.  Though the financial cost associated with obesity is not the most significant cost, it may be the factor that you can use to convince your patients that controlling their weight is in their own best interest.