The cost of child and adolescent injuries and the savings from prevention

Cost-of-illness data are useful in comparing magnitudes of various health problems, assessing risks, setting research priorities, and selecting interventions that most efficiently reduce health burdens. With analyses of national and state data sets, this chapter presents data on the frequency, costs...

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Main Authors: Miller, Ted, Finkelstein, Eric, Zaloshnja, E, Hendrie, Delia
Other Authors: Karen DeSafey Liller
Format: Book Chapter
Published: American Public Health Association 2012
Subjects:
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/2985
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author Miller, Ted
Finkelstein, Eric
Zaloshnja, E
Hendrie, Delia
author2 Karen DeSafey Liller
author_facet Karen DeSafey Liller
Miller, Ted
Finkelstein, Eric
Zaloshnja, E
Hendrie, Delia
author_sort Miller, Ted
building Curtin Institutional Repository
collection Online Access
description Cost-of-illness data are useful in comparing magnitudes of various health problems, assessing risks, setting research priorities, and selecting interventions that most efficiently reduce health burdens. With analyses of national and state data sets, this chapter presents data on the frequency, costs, and quality-of-life losses associated with child and adolescent injury in 2000. The frequency, severity, and costs of injury—unintentional and intentional—make it a leading child and adolescent health problem. Child and adolescent injuries in 2000 resulted in an estimated $24 billion in lifetime medical spending and $82 billion in present and future work losses, including caregiver losses. These injuries killed approximately 18,000 children and left approximately 160,000 children and adolescents with permanent work-related disabilities. Because Medicaid and other government sources paid for 29% of the days children spent in hospitals because of injury, the government has a financial interest in, and arguably a responsibility for, ensuring the safety of disadvantaged children.Many proven child safety interventions cost less than the medical and other resource costs they save. Thus, governments, managed care companies, and third-party payers could save money by increasing the routine use of selected child safety measures, such as functional family therapy for juvenile offenders, booster seats, bicycle helmets, smoke alarms, and graduated driver licensing. Yet these and other proven injury prevention interventions are not universally implemented. Possible barriers to adoption include the following: (1) savings may be split across multiple payers, (2) the payback period may be too long, (3) safety device subsidizers would have to subsidize parents who would buy the devices anyway as well as parents who would not, and (4) intervention may be a risky departure from proven practice or prove politically difficult.
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spelling curtin-20.500.11937-29852017-02-28T01:25:45Z The cost of child and adolescent injuries and the savings from prevention Miller, Ted Finkelstein, Eric Zaloshnja, E Hendrie, Delia Karen DeSafey Liller data sets disabilities assessing risks Cost-of-illness quality-of-life losses reduce health burdens child safety interventions Cost-of-illness data are useful in comparing magnitudes of various health problems, assessing risks, setting research priorities, and selecting interventions that most efficiently reduce health burdens. With analyses of national and state data sets, this chapter presents data on the frequency, costs, and quality-of-life losses associated with child and adolescent injury in 2000. The frequency, severity, and costs of injury—unintentional and intentional—make it a leading child and adolescent health problem. Child and adolescent injuries in 2000 resulted in an estimated $24 billion in lifetime medical spending and $82 billion in present and future work losses, including caregiver losses. These injuries killed approximately 18,000 children and left approximately 160,000 children and adolescents with permanent work-related disabilities. Because Medicaid and other government sources paid for 29% of the days children spent in hospitals because of injury, the government has a financial interest in, and arguably a responsibility for, ensuring the safety of disadvantaged children.Many proven child safety interventions cost less than the medical and other resource costs they save. Thus, governments, managed care companies, and third-party payers could save money by increasing the routine use of selected child safety measures, such as functional family therapy for juvenile offenders, booster seats, bicycle helmets, smoke alarms, and graduated driver licensing. Yet these and other proven injury prevention interventions are not universally implemented. Possible barriers to adoption include the following: (1) savings may be split across multiple payers, (2) the payback period may be too long, (3) safety device subsidizers would have to subsidize parents who would buy the devices anyway as well as parents who would not, and (4) intervention may be a risky departure from proven practice or prove politically difficult. 2012 Book Chapter http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/2985 American Public Health Association restricted
spellingShingle data sets
disabilities
assessing risks
Cost-of-illness
quality-of-life losses
reduce health burdens
child safety interventions
Miller, Ted
Finkelstein, Eric
Zaloshnja, E
Hendrie, Delia
The cost of child and adolescent injuries and the savings from prevention
title The cost of child and adolescent injuries and the savings from prevention
title_full The cost of child and adolescent injuries and the savings from prevention
title_fullStr The cost of child and adolescent injuries and the savings from prevention
title_full_unstemmed The cost of child and adolescent injuries and the savings from prevention
title_short The cost of child and adolescent injuries and the savings from prevention
title_sort cost of child and adolescent injuries and the savings from prevention
topic data sets
disabilities
assessing risks
Cost-of-illness
quality-of-life losses
reduce health burdens
child safety interventions
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/2985