[The cost of violence for the public health system in Brazil: available data and possibilities for estimation].
The Brazilian public budget for health was R$ 53 billion (approximately U$ 20 billion) in 2003. What share of this total was to treat victims of violence? It is impossible to estimate that proportion directly, due to limitations in the available data. This paper proposes a methodology to estimate the cost of violence for the public health system, using data from the Unified National Health System, the government budget, and the demand for public medical services (National Household Sample Survey). According to our estimates, in 2004 the costs of treatment for victims of external causes, aggressions, and traffic accidents were R$ 2.2 billion, R$ 119 million, and R$ 453 million, respectively. These findings were approximately four times higher than those observed in other studies.
Rodrigues
Rute Imanishi
RI
Instituto de Pesquisa Econômica Aplicada, Rio de Janeiro, Brasil. rute.imanishi@ipea.gov.br
Cerqueira
Daniel Ricardo de Castro
DR
Lobão
Waldir Jesus de Araújo
WJ
Carvalho
Alexandre Xavier Ywata de
AX
D000063:Accidents, Traffic / Q000191:economics; D000555:Ambulatory Care Information Systems; D001938:Brazil; D002017:Budgets / Q000379:methods; D003625:Data Collection / Q000379:methods*; D005380:Financing, Government / Q000191:economics*; D017048:Health Care Costs / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006751:Hospital Information Systems; D006801:Humans; D014754:Violence / Q000191:economics*; D014947:Wounds and Injuries / Q000191:economics