Iowa State Auditor Sand comments on cost of unvaccinated COVID-19 hospitalizations

Adults aged 18 and older who are eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine but refuse it are costing the U.S. health system billions of dollars, according to a study by the non-partisan Peterson Center on Healthcare and the Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF).
“Any hospitalization due to a serious illness is difficult for the patient and their families,” said Auditor of State Rob Sand. “It’s especially disheartening when the hospitalization is almost entirely preventable.”
The COVID-19 vaccine has been readily available to most eligible adults since May. However, data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) indicates as of Aug. 26, only 51.9 percent of the U.S. population is fully vaccinated.
An analysis by the Peterson Center on Healthcare and KFF indicates 98.3 percent of the 185,000 adults hospitalized with a confirmed case of COVID19 in June and July were unvaccinated. Of those hospitalizations, 113,000 were deemed preventable. At an estimated $20,000 per hospitalization, the cost of preventable hospitalizations among the unvaccinated totaled an estimated $2.3 billion in June and July. That estimate does not include the cost of outpatient treatment or the overall burden placed on the healthcare system.
“We are all paying for these preventable hospitalizations, whether it be in the form of premiums to private insurers or costs to taxpayer-funded public programs,” said Sand. “Please don’t add to others’ expenses: get the vaccine. Most importantly, it saves lives, but it also saves money.”

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