Valladolid, Jan 25 (EFE) per patient, up to 21,199 euros in those who required admission to the ICU, according to the study prepared by a team from the University of Valladolid and the Valladolid Clinic.
The study was based on data from the Minimum Basic Data Set (CMBD), a clinical and administrative database that covers approximately 99.5% of Spanish public and private hospitals and includes discharge reports.
The University of Valladolid has detailed this Wednesday in a statement that the study includes the health costs of the 217,106 patients (56.5% men, with an average age of 67.1) hospitalized for covid in the first year of the pandemic in Spain amounted to more than 1,234 million.
The average cost per patient was 16% higher than in the rest of the admissions (5,685 euros compared to 4,881 euros), rising to 21,199 euros in the cases that required admission to the ICU (9.5% of total admissions). .
In addition, the study shows that the costs were higher in deceased patients (8,764 euros), in men (6,521.21 euros) and in patients aged 60 to 79 (6,251 euros).
The authors of the study belong to the departments of Cell Biology, Genetics, Histology and Pharmacology (Pharmacology Area) and of Surgery, Otorhinolaryngology and Physiotherapy (Anaesthesiology Area) of the UVa, and to the Anesthesiology and Resuscitation and Microbiology services of the Hospital Clinical.
A sample of the costs of hospitalizations due to covid in the first year of the pandemic
One of the authors, Professor Eduardo Gutiérrez Abejón, has stressed that their results “show an image of the direct costs of patients hospitalized for COVID-19 in the first year of the pandemic.”
And it has allowed them “to quantify in which sectors of the population the expenses have been higher (ICU admissions, men and those between 60 and 79 years of age) and, therefore, where they have to focus even more economic efforts ».
As in the rest of the world, in Spain the increase in the care burden due to COVID-19 made it necessary to increase hospital capacity, which required significant additional financing.
«The conclusions we reached in the study should serve as support for those responsible for health policies, health professionals and the health system, to optimize the use of health resources in a pandemic situation and thus establish the plans necessary strategies to be prepared for future health emergencies”, added Dr. Gutiérrez.
In the opinion of this professor of Pharmacology from the University of Valladolid, “the health care received by Spanish patients was in line with the countries of the European sphere, and from the economic point of view, health spending increased to meet the needs of patients, always taking into account the scarcity of some resources necessary to deal with COVID-19”.
The data for this national economic evaluation were collected from the Minimum Basic Data Set (CMBD) and were provided by the Ministry of Health, Institute of Health Information, and the study has been financed by the Carlos III Health Institute and European funds. FEDER.