The homeless incur higher costs because they have underlying health issues when admitted and stay longer while the hospital determines where they should go. Those with psychiatric problems have a higher severity of illness, probably because it has not been treated.
The study, in the March issue of Medical Care, published by the American Public Health Association, also found the homeless have about 23 hospitalizations per 100, compared with five per 100 for the general population.
The costs cited in the Toronto study almost exactly match those found in a 1998 New York study, the only other published research on this topic.
Read the release from St. Michael’s Hospital on indigent care.
Read more coverage on the costs of treating the uninsured.
–Number of Adults With Health Insurance Hits New Low for Gallup
