• The incidence rate measures how often an event such as illness or foreclosure can occur within a given period of time.

  • This indicator makes it possible to anticipate future incidents and plan accordingly.
  • Incidence is different from prevalence, which measures the total number of cases.
  • Pharmaceutical and biotech companies rely on disease rates when seeking FDA approval to bring their drugs to market.
  • Companies that report positive incidence numbers are good choices for investors, while companies with negative numbers often see losses in their stocks.