Economic Burden of Hospitalizations for Heat-Related Illnesses in the United States, 2001-2010.

ABSTRACT: Understanding how heat waves affect morbidity and mortality, as well as the associated economic costs, is essential for characterizing the human health impacts of extreme heat under a changing climate. Only a handful of studies have examined healthcare costs associated with exposures to high temperatures. This research explores costs associated with hospitalizations for heat-related illness (HRI) in the United States using the 2001 to 2010 Nationwide Inpatient Sample (NIS). Descriptive statistics of patient data for HRI hospitalizations were examined and costs of hospitalizations were reported using the all-payer inpatient cost-to-charge ratio. Costs were examined using a log-gamma model with patient and hospital characteristics included as fixed effects. Adjusted mean costs were then comp

SUBMITTER: Schmeltz MT 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5036727 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature