2026 Costs of Dementia Care Expected to Be $818 Billion in the United States

THURSDAY, June 25, 2026 (HealthDay News) — The total costs of dementia are anticipated to be $818 billion in 2026, driven by quality-of-life losses for persons with dementia and care partners, according to a study published online June 24 in Alzheimer”s & Dementia.

Johanna Thunell, Ph.D., from the Leonard D. Schaeffer Institute for Public Policy and Government Service at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, and colleagues quantified the 2026 cost of dementia in the United States using dynamic microsimulation, the Health and Retirement Study, and other national data.

The researchers found that 5.7 million U.S. adults aged ≥51 years are living with dementia in 2026, supported by 5.2 million care partners. Total costs are $818, driven by quality-of-life losses for persons with dementia and care partners ($320 billion and $15 billion, respectively). About 80 percent of costs are accounted for by unpaid care ($237 billion), earning losses ($23 billion), and out-of-pocket costs together with quality of life losses (families bear this cost). Seventy percent of health care costs are covered by governments ($222 billion).

“Remarkable innovations can alter the trajectory of dementia in the United States if they are used effectively,” coauthor Dana Goldman, Ph.D., also from the Leonard D. Schaeffer Institute, said in a statement. “The evidence we are building on dementia costs will provide the health care system with a clearer understanding of these and future innovations.”

One author disclosed financial ties to the pharmaceutical industry.

Abstract/Full Text