New Report: In 2024, Parkinson's Disease Cost the U.S. $82.2 Billion, Surpassing Previous Projections

• Findings show annual costs surpassed the $79 billion previously projected for 2037, more than a decade early
• Care partners experienced $8.3 billion in lost earnings and productivity due to reduced work hours, early retirement or leaving the workforce
• Combined with disability-related costs, the federal government spent more than $25 billion on care for Parkinson's and related conditions

NEW YORK, March 26, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Parkinson's disease and atypical parkinsonisms place an increasing economic strain on people living with the disease, their families and the federal government, with total annual costs reaching $82.2 billion in 2024, according to a new report released today by The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research. This is the most comprehensive assessment of the cost of these diseases to date, including caregiving, productivity loss and costs incurred before diagnosis, and it builds on a 2019 report that found Parkinson's disease cost $52 billion in 2017.

The new report, The Economic Burden of Parkinson's Disease and Atypical Parkinsonisms in the United States, reveals that costs have already surpassed the $79 billion previously projected for 2037 — more than a decade ahead of schedule. Without intervention, the annual cost is expected to exceed $112 billion by 2045. Approximately 1.2 million people in the United States live with Parkinson's disease or atypical parkinsonisms today.

The analysis breaks down the $82.2 billion into direct and indirect costs:

• $23.8 billion is attributable to direct medical costs, including hospitalizations, outpatient care and medications.
• $58.4 billion reflects indirect and non-medical costs, including lost income, disability and unpaid caregiving.

Increasing Financial and Caregiving Strain on Patients and Families

The report found that people living with Parkinson's and their families bear a substantial share of the disease's economic impact. In 2024 alone:

• Care partners shouldered a significant burden, accounting for $8.3 billion in lost earnings and productivity due to reduced work hours, early retirement or leaving the workforce.
• Nearly 40% of people living with Parkinson's relied on unpaid care partners. More than 20% of those care partners retired or worked fewer hours, and 34% canceled or missed their own routine health care visits.
• Patients incurred an average of more than $10,000 in additional medical costs in the year prior to diagnosis, reflecting the prolonged, often uncertain path to diagnosis.
  

These findings reflect the challenges faced by millions in the United States, including patients, family members, and care partners. "My wife and I have had to realign how we live now, and our plans and ambitions for the future," said Phil Stelzer of Defiance, Ohio, who has lived with early-onset Parkinson's since 2023. "We try to save more, expecting to have to rely on those savings sooner in life, but fighting Parkinson's disease is also expensive, which cuts into what we can save. It's been a complete change to our traditional retirement planning and investments."

Federal Programs Bear a Significant Share of Costs

Parkinson's disease is also a growing financial commitment for federal programs:

• Approximately 90% of direct medical costs are paid by Medicare and Medicaid.
• Combined with disability-related costs, the federal government spent more than $25 billion in 2024 caring for people with Parkinson's and related conditions.

The findings come as more than 300 people from 49 states recently gathered in Washington, D.C. for the 2026 Parkinson's Policy Forum. Advocates, including people living with Parkinson's, care partners, researchers and organizational leaders, met with more than 240 congressional offices to urge lawmakers to increase federal research funding at the National Institutes of Health (NIH); address environmental risk factors such as the herbicide paraquat; and implement the National Parkinson's Project — a coordinated federal initiative to improve prevention, diagnosis, treatment and care. The Forum coincided with new polling showing broad bipartisan support for these priorities and for a greater federal role in addressing Parkinson's disease.

Leading Nonprofit Organizations Collaborate on Report Commission

Following the 2019 report, this new analysis expands the definition of "burden" to capture caregiving, productivity loss, non-medical expenses and costs incurred before diagnosis. The study also incorporates, for the first time, detailed estimates of atypical parkinsonisms (including progressive supranuclear palsy, multiple system atrophy and dementia with Lewy bodies), which account for approximately 122,000 of the 1.2 million affected and have historically been underrepresented in national analyses.

To conduct this analysis, researchers used multiple national data sources, including Medicare beneficiary claims data, commercial claims data, as well as a community impact survey, to estimate the prevalence of Parkinson's and atypical parkinsonisms and assess their full economic impact.

The study was commissioned and published by The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research with support from nonprofit sponsors: the Parkinson's Foundation, the American Parkinson Disease Association and CurePSP, and from industry sponsors: AbbVie and Acadia Pharmaceuticals.

Representatives of the nonprofit organizations affiliated with the report, who all participated in last week's Parkinson's Policy Forum, said:

• "Behind these data are millions of people — patients, families and care partners — navigating the daily realities of Parkinson's, including a growing financial strain that touches every part of their lives," said Debi Brooks, chief executive officer and co-founder of The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research. "It underscores the urgency and opportunity in front of us. Our north star is clear: accelerate new treatments and a cure. Investing in research now is a strategic, forward-looking commitment that can ease pressure on families and lower long-term costs for federal programs and health care systems. Breakthroughs in Parkinson's will benefit us all."
• "It is alarming to see the societal cost to treat PD continue to grow," said James Beck, PhD, executive vice president and chief scientific officer at the Parkinson's Foundation. "This new study further underscores the extreme financial burden to not only society, but to the families of those living with PD. Parkinson's remains one of the most expensive diseases to care for yet the U.S. government invests less than 1% of this cost in searching for better treatments and cures through research. Disease-modifying breakthroughs are within reach, that's why together with the Parkinson's community, the Parkinson's Foundation is urging for an increased investment of at least $600 million annually for Parkinson's research at NIH."
• "APDA is committed to making each day easier for everyone impacted by Parkinson's disease, but the financial hardship of life with PD continues to rise, and as the study shows, it's rising at a faster pace than anticipated," said Anne Hubbard, chief public policy officer, American Parkinson Disease Association (APDA). "Increased federal investment in Parkinson's research is critical, and is needed now, to get us to a cure faster and mitigate this ever-increasing economic burden on the PD community and our country."
• "These findings bring into focus the full economic burden of PSP, CBD and MSA, including the often overlooked indirect costs borne by families and care partners," said Kristophe Diaz, PhD, Chief Executive Officer of CurePSP. "They make clear that this is not only a scientific challenge, but a societal and economic one. Ensuring that atypical parkinsonisms are fully represented in diagnosis, care and research, while advancing earlier detection, robust biomarkers and effective therapies, will be critical to improving outcomes and reducing burden."

Download the report and explore the full findings here.

About The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research

As the world's largest nonprofit funder of Parkinson's research, The Michael J. Fox Foundation is dedicated to accelerating a cure for Parkinson's disease and improved therapies for those living with the condition today. The Foundation pursues its goals through an aggressively funded, highly targeted research program coupled with active global engagement of scientists, Parkinson's patients, business leaders, clinical trial participants, donors, and volunteers. In addition to funding $2.5 billion in research to date, the Foundation has fundamentally altered the trajectory of progress toward a cure. Operating at the hub of worldwide Parkinson's research, the Foundation forges groundbreaking collaborations with industry leaders, academic scientists and government research funders; creates a robust open-access data set and biosample library to speed scientific breakthroughs and treatment through its landmark clinical study, PPMI; increases the flow of participants into Parkinson's disease clinical trials with its online tool, Fox Trial Finder; promotes Parkinson's awareness through high-profile advocacy, events, and outreach; and coordinates the grassroots involvement of thousands of Team Fox members around the world. For more information, visit us at www.michaeljfox.org, Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn.

SOURCE The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research