OBJECTIVES:  It is estimated that over 100 million Americans currently have high blood pressure, high cholesterol or both, and most of these individuals do not properly control their conditions.  This study assesses the relationships between employee adherence to both statins and antihypertensives and the short-term disability costs in a large manufacturing company.  METHODS:  A retrospective analysis of pharmacy claims was conducted to identify individuals within a large manufacturing company who were continuously eligible for a three-year time frame (between 2001 and 2007) and who received a prescription for both an antihypertensive and a statin during that time. In those cases where an individual’s eligibility spanned a longer time period, the most recent three-year span was chosen. The resulting sample included both treatment-naïve and treatment-experienced patients. Medical, pharmacy, and short-term disability costs were calculated for a one year follow-up. Adherence was measured using proportion of days covered (PDC), where a PDC≥80 was considered adherent.  Multi-variable linear regression was used to examine the relationships between cost and adherence, controlling for patient demographics (age, gender, and job type) and Charlson co-morbidity score. RESULTS: Among the 10575 individuals in the study, the mean adherence to these cardiovascular medication classes was 67%, and 46% (N=4859) of the study population had a PDC≥80. The average total medical/pharmacy costs were higher for the adherent patients, primarily due to their higher pharmacy costs.  Individuals who were adherent to their cardiovascular medications had lower short-term disability costs ($1331/year) than did the non-adherent ($1828/year). CONCLUSIONS:  In general, patients who were adherent to their statin/anti-hypertensive drug regimens had lower short-term disability costs than did the non-adherent. Employers concerned with the relationship between cardiovascular disease and employee costs should also consider the effect of adherence to statins and antihypertensives on short-term disability costs.