Costs of the COVID‐19 pandemic associated with obesity in Europe: A health‐care cost model

Excess weight is associated with severe outcomes of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19). We aimed to estimate the total secondary care costs by body mass index (BMI, kg/m(2)) category when hospitalized due to COVID‐19 in Europe during the first wave of the pandemic from January to June 2020. Building a health‐care cost model, this study aimed to estimate the total costs of COVID‐19. Information on risk of hospitalization, admission to intensive care unit (ICU) and risk of ventilation were based on published data. Average cost per patient and in total were calculated based on risks of admission to ICU, risk of invasive mechanical ventilation and length of hospital stay when hospitalized and published costs associated with hospitalization. The total direct costs of secondary care during the first wave of COVID‐19 in Europe were estimated at EUR 13.9 billon, whereof 76% accounted for treating people with overweight and obesity. The average cost per hospital admission increased with BMI, from EUR 15831 for BMI <25 kg/m(2) to EUR 30982 for BMI ≥40 kg/m(2). This study reveals that excess weight contributes disproportionally to the costs of COVID‐19. This might reflect that overweight and obesity caused the COVID‐19 pandemic to result in more severe outcomes for citizens and higher secondary care costs throughout Europe.