Expenditures for Trauma-Related Disorders among the Elderly and Non-Elderly, 2009: Estimates for the U.S. Civilian Noninstitutionalized Population

Older adults (age 65 and older) currently make up 13.2 percent of the U.S. civilian noninstitutionalized population. In the past century, the U.S. experienced an 11-fold increase in the elderly population while the under 65 population tripled. Older adults who encounter serious trauma-related events have a higher probability of morbidity and mortality than their younger counterparts (Victorino, Chong, and Pal, 2003). In 2009, trauma-related disorders accounted for $80.8 billion in expenditures for the U.S. civilian noninstitutionalized population, making it one of the four most expensive conditions to treat. This Statistical Brief presents estimates based on the Household Component of the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS-HC) on the use of and expenditures for medical care related to trauma disorders among the U.S. civilian noninstitutionalized population for those 65 and over and those under age 65. Annual estimates for 2009 are shown by characteristics of individuals and type of service. All differences between estimates noted in the text are statistically significant at the 0.05 level or better.