|
Spinal Cord Injury Costs
Only 52% of individuals who have suffered a spinal cord injury
are covered by private health insurance at time of injury.
The average hospital stay immediately after the injury is
15 days, at a price of $140,000. This is followed by an average
of 44 days in a rehabilitation unit.
|
Average Yearly Expenses
for medical care and living expenses
|
Severity of Injury
|
First Year |
Each Subsequent Year
|
| High Tetraplegia (C1-C4)
|
$572,178
|
$102,491 |
| Low Tetraplegia (C5-C8)
|
$369,488 |
$41,983 |
| Paraplegia |
$209,074 |
$21,274 |
| Incomplete Motor Functional
at any Level |
$168,627 |
$11,817 |
Estimated Lifetime
Costs by Age at Injury
for costs directly associated with SCI
|
Severity
of Injury
|
25 Years
Old |
50 Years
Old |
| High Tetraplegia
(C1-C4) |
$2,185,667
|
$1,286,714
|
| Low Tetraplegia
(C5-C8) |
$1,235,841
|
$782,628 |
| Paraplegia
|
$730,277 |
$498,095 |
| Incomplete
Motor Functional at any Level |
$487,150 |
$353,047 |
These figures do not include
any indirect costs such as losses in wages, fringe benefits
and productivity. Eight years after the injury, 63% of SCI
individuals are unemployed.
Source: The University of Alabama National Spinal Cord
Injury Statistical Center
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