Still, the costs of not putting a cap on head or back injuries has hit manufacturers the hardest, he said.

Retirees, for example, can point to research from the early 1990's by the Labor Department suggesting that higher medical costs hit them especially hard.

Just the costs alone on a deal like this can hit a guy pretty hard.

For fiscal 2006, monthly costs for Iraq alone could hit $8 billion, the study projected.

"At last, the cost is hitting the middle class, and American business is understanding the effects on the bottom line."

So far, it has emerged that the cost of repairing damaged roads will alone hit the £1m mark.

The cost of paying public sector pensions will hit £30bn in the next year.

Such costs hit hard in an area of rural poverty.

It is here that the human and social cost of the crisis hits hardest.

First, the rising cost of food and energy hits the very poorest families hardest.