Excessive Drinking Costs U.S. $223.5 Billion

A new study finds that excessive alcohol consumption cost the United States $223.5 billion in 2006, or about $1.90 per drink. Excessive alcohol consumption is known to kill about 79,000 people in the United States each year, but a new study released by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and The Lewin Group shows that it also has a huge economic impact as well.

According to the new study, the cost of excessive alcohol consumption in the United States reached $223.5 billion in 2006 or about $1.90 per drink. Almost three-quarters of these costs were due to binge drinking. Binge drinking is defined as consuming four or more alcoholic beverages per occasion for women or five or more drinks per occasion for men, and is the most common form of excessive alcohol consumption in the United States.

The researchers found that the cost of excessive drinking was farreaching, reflecting the effect this dangerous behavior has on many aspects of the drinker’s life and on the lives of those around them. The costs largely resulted from losses in workplace productivity (72% of the total cost), health care expenses for problems caused by excessive drinking (11% of total), law enforcement and other criminal justice expenses related to excessive alcohol consumption (9% of total), and motor vehicle crash costs from impaired driving (6% of the total). The study analyzed national data from multiple sources to estimate the costs due to excessive drinking in 2006, the most recent year for which data were available.

The study did not consider a number of other costs such as those because of pain and suffering among either the excessive drinker or others that were affected by their drinking, and thus may be an underestimate. Nevertheless, the researchers estimated that excessive drinking cost $746 for every man, woman, and child in the United States in 2006.

Reducing the Costs

The CDC says that there are many evidence-based strategies that communities can use to prevent excessive drinking, including the following:

• Increasing alcohol excise taxes

• Reducing alcohol outlet density

• Reducing the days and hours of alcohol sales

• Holding alcohol retailers liable for injuries or damage done by their intoxicated or underage customers

By implementing these evidencebased strategies, it is possible to reduce excessive alcohol consumption and the many health and social costs related to it.

American Journal of Preventive Medicine Year: 2011, Issue: Vol 41 | No. 5 | November 2011 | Pages 457-550 Economic Costs of Excessive Alcohol Consumption in the U.S., 2006 Ellen E. Bouchery, et al