Disease and Economic Burden of COVID-19 in the Prevaccine Era in a Fragmented Health System: The Argentine Case

Objectives

The impact of COVID-19 in Argentina’s health and economic outcomes before the implementation of the national vaccination plan has not been fully characterized. This study aimed to estimate the health and economic burden of COVID-19 in the adult population in Argentina.

Methods

We conducted a retrospective observational study using a national COVID-19 surveillance data set to assess (1) clinical burden, including incidence rates, mortality rates, and patterns of hospitalization categorized by severity based on the World Health Organization criteria; (2) economic burden; and (3) years of life lost. The cost of illness analysis was used to estimate the cost per patient with COVID-19, expressed in 2023 US dollars ($). The analyzed period was from March 2020 to June 2021, before the introduction of the vaccination as a national strategic plan for COVID-19.

Results

During the study period, the incidence rate of COVID-19 among the adult population in Argentina was 11 490.2 cases per 100 000 persons. As in many other countries in the region, most cases were classified as mild (95%), followed by 4% severe cases (requiring hospitalization) and 1% critical cases (intensive care unit [ICU] admission). The age-standardized years of life lost per 100 000 persons increased steeply from 58.6 in the 20 to 29 age group to 576.1 in the 60 to 69 age group. The total cost associated with COVID-19 was $1370 million, ranging from $244 in mild cases to $791 in critical cases. Concerning the health sectors, a higher total cost is observed in the social security sector, accounting for nearly 51% of the total costs, mainly because it has the highest rate of health coverage.

Conclusions

Before the vaccines were widely used, COVID-19 significantly strained Argentina’s public health and economy. These discoveries can aid policy makers in making well-informed choices and distributing resources efficiently to enhance future national strategies concerning surveillance, prevention, treatment, and potential long-term impacts on community health.