Study: Healthcare costs plummet after bariatric surgery

Editor's Note

Obese patients who had gastric bypass surgery cut their healthcare costs nearly 40% after 4 years and 80% if they had type 2 diabetes preoperatively, finds this study presented at Obesity Week 2015, which is hosted by the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery.

The main reduction in costs was related to fewer hospital admissions and clinic visits along with a reduction in the use of prescription drugs for diabetes, hypertension, and heart disease, the authors say.

A new study based on national insurance claims in the United States found that patients with obesity who had gastric bypass surgery cut their healthcare costs by nearly 40 percent after four years, and by 80 percent, if they also had type 2 diabetes before surgery.