Therapeutic inertia, or the failure to initiate or intensify treatment in a timely manner, is common in patients with type 2 diabetes and makes a substantial contribution to the burden associated with the disease in the USA.

We performed a health economic modeling analysis to quantify the clinical and economic burden associated with poor glycemic control due to therapeutic inertia based on published clinical data and unit costs to estimate complication costs and lost workplace productivity.

It was estimated that in a population of 13.4 million patients with poor glycemic control (HbA1c 9.0% [75 mmol/mol]), delaying intensification of therapy by 1 year was associated with a loss of approximately 13,390 life-years and increased total costs of USD 7.3 billion (1-year time horizon).

This modeling analysis provides evidence that initiatives and interventions aimed at preventing therapeutic inertia could play an important role in improving clinical outcomes and avoiding excess costs.