title: Financial implication of proposed legislation on hospital reimbursement for the injured drunk driver.
abstract: The state of Michigan currently has no-fault automobile insurance with personal injury protection, providing anyone injured in motor vehicle collisions with unlimited medical and rehabilitation benefits and lost wage recovery. A new bill proposal, Michigan House Bill 5588, will eliminate hospital reimbursement for those who are found to be intoxicated at the time of a motor vehicle collision. These medical costs will be passed on to patients, which may result in a large reimbursement deficit for hospitals caring for these patients. This retrospective review examines the costs of caring for all intoxicated drivers who were admitted to a Level 1 trauma center after a motor vehicle collision over a 2-year period. Intoxicated drivers were younger (P = 0.0002), had a lower Glasgow Coma Scale (P = 0.0013), and were more likely to meet Level 1 trauma criteria (P = 0.0002). The sum of total charges for injured drunk drivers totaled $5.2 million. When taking into account fixed and variable costs of care, lost hospital net income would be $3 million (21.9%) over a 3-year span whether House Bill 5588 passes. In conclusion, the passage of House Bill 5588 will lead to a large financial burden for hospitals that treat intoxicated drivers.
authors.affiliation: Department of Trauma, William Beaumont School of Medicine, Beaumont Health Systems, Royal Oak, Michigan, USA.
authors.forename: Michelle
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Veenstra
authors.forename: Patricia
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Pentiak
authors.forename: Claire
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Peeples
authors.forename: Holly A
authors.initials: HA
authors.lastname: Bair
authors.forename: Rose E
authors.initials: RE
authors.lastname: Callahan
authors.forename: Felicia
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Ivascu
mesh_terms: D000063:Accidents, Traffic; D000328:Adult; D000435:Alcoholic Intoxication; D001334:Automobile Driving; D005260:Female; D017722:Hospital Charges; D017721:Hospital Costs; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008824:Michigan; D008875:Middle Aged; D012051:Reimbursement Mechanisms / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D014947:Wounds and Injuries / Q000191:economics* / Q000628:therapy