Financial Charges of Hospitalized Motorcyclists at the Massachusetts General Hospital
- 1 April 1986
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Wolters Kluwer Health
- Vol. 26 (4) , 343-347
- https://doi.org/10.1097/00005373-198604000-00007
Abstract
We studied 47 hospitalized motorcyclists admitted through the Massachusetts General Hospital emergency room during a 1-year period. Four factors were studied: (1) hospitalization changes, (2) hospitalization lengths, (3) medical insurance profiles, and (4) patterns of injuries. The mean hospitalization charges were $15,114. The total hospital charges for this group of patients were nearly $700,000. These figures excluded the costs of subsequent admissions, surgeons'' fees, rehabilitation, vocational training, legal suits, and loss of wages. Sixteen per cent of the charges were uncollectable. Forty-six per cent of the patients were uninsured. The average hospitalization was 22 days. The mean age was 22 years and 90% of patients were less than 30 years old. Eightly-five per cent of the patients sustained at least one fracture. Lower extremity fractures occurred in 60%, open fractures in 55%, and tibia fractures occurred in 33% of the patients. Associated head, chest, or abdominal injuries occurred in 40% of the patients. Patients with multiple fractures, open fractures, and grade 3 open tibia fractures had substantially higher hospital bills.This publication has 0 references indexed in Scilit: