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. 2014 Oct 10;63(40):894-900.

Vital signs: health burden and medical costs of nonfatal injuries to motor vehicle occupants - United States, 2012

Gwen Bergen, Cora Peterson, David Ederer, Curtis Florence, Tadesse Haileyesus, Marcie-jo Kresnow, Likang Xu; Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

Vital signs: health burden and medical costs of nonfatal injuries to motor vehicle occupants - United States, 2012

Gwen Bergen et al. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep. .

Abstract

Background: Motor vehicle crashes are a leading cause of death and injury in the United States. The purpose of this study was to describe the current health burden and medical and work loss costs of nonfatal crash injuries among vehicle occupants in the United States.

Methods: CDC analyzed data on emergency department (ED) visits resulting from nonfatal crash injuries among vehicle occupants in 2012 using the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System – All Injury Program (NEISS-AIP) and the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project National Inpatient Sample (HCUP-NIS). The number and rate of all ED visits for the treatment of crash injuries that resulted in the patient being released and the number and rate of hospitalizations for the treatment of crash injuries were estimated, as were the associated number of hospital days and lifetime medical and work loss costs.

Results: In 2012, an estimated 2,519,471 ED visits resulted from nonfatal crash injuries, with an estimated lifetime medical cost of $18.4 billion (2012 U.S. dollars). Approximately 7.5% of these visits resulted in hospitalizations that required an estimated 1,057,465 hospital days in 2012.

Conclusions: Nonfatal crash injuries occur frequently and result in substantial costs to individuals, employers, and society. For each motor vehicle crash death in 2012, eight persons were hospitalized, and 100 were treated and released from the ED.

Implications for public health: Public health practices and laws, such as primary seat belt laws, child passenger restraint laws, ignition interlocks to prevent alcohol impaired driving, sobriety checkpoints, and graduated driver licensing systems have demonstrated effectiveness for reducing motor vehicle crashes and injuries. They might also substantially reduce associated ED visits, hospitalizations, and medical costs.

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Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
Percentage of emergency department visits for nonfatal crash injuries among motor vehicle occupants that result in hospitalization, by age group — National Electronic Injury Surveillance System, United States, 2012 * 95% confidence interval.
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2
Percentage of emergency department visits for the top five nonfatal crash injuries among motor vehicle occupants, by nature of injury and disposition — National Electronic Injury Surveillance System, United States, 2010 * Estimates based on ≤20 injury cases or a national (weighted) estimate of ≤1,200 cases might be unstable.
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References

    1. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Traffic safety facts 2012 data. Washington, DC: US Department of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration; 2014. Available at http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/pubs/812016.pdf.
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    1. Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project. Overview of the National Inpatient Sample (NIS) Rockville, MD: US Department of Health and Human Services, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality; 2014. Available at http://www.hcup-us.ahrq.gov/nisoverview.jsp.
    1. Lawrence BA, Miller TR. Medical and work loss cost estimation methods for the WISQARS cost of injury module. Calverton, MD: Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation; 2014. Available at http://www.cdc.gov/injury/wisqars/pdf/wisqars_cost_methods-a.pdf.

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