
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: WEDNESDAY, March 14, 1990                   TAG: 9003143049
SECTION: BUSINESS                    PAGE: A5   EDITION: EVENING 
SOURCE: GEORGE KEGLEY BUSINESS EDITOR
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

DEPRESSED WORKERS COST TIME, MONEY

Nine to 20 percent of the nation's population has symptoms of depression, costing each affected person approximately 16 days of lost work a year, said a speaker from Washington.

And depression is showing up in younger workers, interfering with their most productive years, said Veronica Vaccaro of the Washington Business Group on Health.

Vaccaro, who has been promoting health programs for eight years, spoke Tuesday at "Depression: The Bottom Line for Business," a program at the Roanoke Airport Marriott sponsored by the Mental Health Association of Roanoke Valley.

Depression-related absenteeism costs the economy an estimated $10 billion a year, according to the Department of Health and Human Services. Another $4.2 billion in potential earnings is lost because 15 percent of those with severe depression commit suicide, the department said.

Depression accounts for more days in bed than hypertension, diabetes, back pain and gastrointestinal problems, according to a Rand Corp. study, Vaccaro said.

Businesses "are feeling caught" by rising health care costs of all kinds, she said. And companies are paying an annual premium of $3,117 per employee for health care coverage, she said.

As a result, many companies are considering restricting mental health benefits, especially for dependents of employees, Vaccaro said.

Psychotherapy and medication are effective in fighting depression in approximately 85 percent of cases, Vaccaro said.

Both speakers said effective treatment is available. They both recommend the D/ART program - Depression/Awareness, Recognition, Treatment - administered by the National Institute of Mental Health.

The program is less costly because it can prevent serious mental illness, Vaccaro said.

by CNB