SATURDAY, Oct. 12, 2002 (HealthDayNews) -- When you stay in the hospital these days, you're paying more and getting less.
Data from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) show the average charge for a person admitted to a hospital for a heart attack increased by about a third -- $20,578 to $28,663 -- from 1993 to 2000.
During the same period, the average number of days a heart attack patient spent in the hospital fell by 26 percent -- 7.4 days to 5.5 days.
The same price increase/time decrease was true for many other high-cost conditions from 1993 to 2000, the AHRQ says. Here are some examples:
- Blood poisoning. Average cost increased from $17,909 to $24,365. Average hospital stay declined from 10 days to 8.2 days.
- Stroke. From $15,365 to $19,956, and from 9.5 days to 6.7 days.
- Diabetes. From $11,021 to $15,104, and from 7.4 days to 5.6 days.
- Pneumonia. From $12,860 to $15,104, and from 7.8 days to 6 days.
- Congestive heart failure. From $11,995 to $15,293, and from 7.4 days to 5.6 days.
- Non-specific chest pain. From $5,135 to $7,543, and from 2.5 days to 1.8 days.
- Chronic obstructive lung disease. From $11,263 to $12,491, and from 7.2 days to 5.3 days.
The hospital costs in this data include nursing care, laboratory analyses, diagnostic tests, medications, use of operating rooms and patient rooms. Physicians' fees aren't included in the average hospital costs. The AHRQ says hospital charges are usually higher than what the hospitals receive in reimbursement from public and commercial insurers.
New technologies and rising medication costs account for much of the increase in hospital costs, while economic pressures have influenced the trend of shorter hospital stays, the AHRQ says.
More information
USA Today has this article on how hospital costs are driving up health-care spending.
