Indirect costs measure disease impact in terms of lost wages due to disability or death.  Indirect costs, like medical care costs, can be estimated and calculated in total for all the medical conditions an individual has, and as the increment attributable solely to musculoskeletal conditions.

Indirect cost for persons age 18 to 64 with a work history add another $77.5 billion, or 0.5% of the GDP in between 2009 and 2011, to the cost for all persons with a musculoskeletal disease, either treated as a primary condition or in addition to another condition. Annual indirect costs attributable to musculoskeletal disease alone (incremental cost) account for an estimated $130.7 billion. Indirect costs attributable to musculoskeletal disease are greater than total indirect costs because of a 4% gap in the probability of working between persons with and without a musculoskeletal condition and a lower mean income. (Reference Table 10.12 PDF CSV)