OBJECTIVES: To quantify individual and national estimates of the indirect costs of rheumatoid arthritis (RA), using national survey data. METHODS: This was a retrospective study using 1996-2006 data from the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS). Individuals’ self-reported health conditions were mapped to the International Classification of Diseases, 9th Revision, Clinical Modification (ICD-9-CM) diagnostic codes. Individuals with an ICD-9-CM diagnostic code of 714.xx (rheumatoid arthritis and other inflammatory polyarthropathies) were categorized as having RA. A two-part model was specified to estimate the probability of time lost from work and annual number of workdays missed due to illness, conditional on missing at least 1 workday among employed individuals. The annual missed workdays were combined with MEPS earnings information to estimate individual and national indirect costs of absenteeism. RESULTS: There were 312 patients with RA (mean age = 46 years; 76% female), and 89,734 without RA (mean age = 41; 52% female). The study revealed that 67% (209/312) of individuals with RA missed work as compared with 58% (52,046/89,734) of those without RA (P=0.0007). Among those individuals who missed work, individuals with RA had a mean annual number of missed workdays of 12.05 versus 7.92 for individuals without RA (P= 0.0081). Per capita indirect costs associated with the incremental difference in annual lost workdays between those with and without RA was $500. The estimated national indirect costs of absenteeism associated with RA were $229 million per year.  CONCLUSIONS: Individuals with RA have a higher probability of missing work and missing more workdays as compared to those without RA. The per capita and national annual indirect costs associated with RA are substantial. The potential of appropriate and early diagnosis and treatment of RA to reduce time lost from work and indirect costs for individuals with RA should be examined.