Domestic violence statistics are sobering. The issue is often hidden from view, but it is a health care problem with a very visible financial impact—costs to society run in the billions of dollars every year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Here is a look at some domestic violence statistics–and the impact of domestic violence on health care costs in the United States.
The direct health care costs of domestic violence involve medical expenses. Of the 2 million women every year who are physically assaulted by their partners, more than 145,000 suffer injuries that require hospitalization. Many require multiple forms of care, including ambulance services, emergency room care, hospital stays and physical therapy, and most others are treated for less severe injuries that often are not identified as being the result of domestic violence.
Survivors face greater health care costs as well. A 2010 study by Ohio State University found that abused females’average health care costs are $585 higher than those of non-abused women during the period of abuse. In the first two years after the abuse ends, victims face costs more than $1,200 higher than those for non-abused women and about $400 higher in the third year.
http://www.nerdwallet.com/blog/health/2014/03/24/domestic-violence-statistics/
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