Inpatient stays involving substance use, mental health disorders sky-high

The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality has released a Statistical Brief on inpatient stays involving mental and substance use disorders shows in 2016, over 55 million people aged 18 years and over (more than one in five adults) suffered from mental and/or substance use disorders (MSUDs). Of these adults, nearly 45 million had a mental disorder alone, 11 million had a substance use disorder alone, and 8 million had both a mental disorder and a substance use disorder.

This Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP) Statistical Brief presents statistics from the 2016 National Inpatient Sample (NIS) on inpatient stays involving MSUDs at community hospitals among patients aged 5 years or older.

Not only do mental and substance use disorders co-occur, they also are linked to other physical conditions such as diabetes, heart disease, and asthma. Disorders such as depression, anxiety, and substance use disorder are associated with significant distress and impairment, including complications with multiple chronic conditions, disability, inability to function in society, and substantial economic costs. The treatment costs of mental disorders alone totaled $201 billion in 2013. Taking into account additional costs associated with lost work productivity and disability payments, the total cost of mental and substance use disorders to society is estimated to be more than twice that amount.

Key findings:

·   In 2016, nearly 10 million inpatient stays had a principal (2.2 million) or secondary (7.7 million) MSUD diagnosis, constituting 6.1 and 21.7 percent of all inpatient stays, respectively.

·   In total, stays principally for MSUDs cost $15.3 billion (3.6 percent of total hospital costs). On average, stays for MSUDs cost $7,100 and were 6.4 days.

·   The rate of stays principally for MSUDs was highest among adults aged 18-64 years.

·   Nearly 60 percent of MSUD stays for patients aged less than 65 years were billed to public payers.

·   One in four stays principally for MSUDs were for depressive disorders. Alcohol-related disorders and schizophrenia each constituted nearly one in five MSUD stays.

·    Although uncommon, stays for eating disorders were the costliest ($19,400 per stay) and the longest (14 days, on average) type of MSUD stay. Inpatient stays for schizophrenia were the second costliest ($8,900 per stay) and second longest (11 days on average) MSUD stay.

·   The most common reason for MSUD stays among males aged 45-64 years was alcohol-related disorders. Schizophrenia was the most common reason for MSUD stays for males aged 18-44 years.