The Texas Medical Center surveyed 5,000 people across the United States and found that the #1 reason for poll participation in the upcoming midterm elections will be, you guessed it, healthcare. While this interest in healthcare is certainly encouraging, there’s more to the healthcare picture than just cost to patients. In the spirit of Halloween and the rapidly approaching midterms, here are 10 terrifying facts to spring you into action – whether that be by voting or by enacting change within your industry.
- 20% of patients with serious or life-altering conditions are misdiagnosed by their primary care providers, and are often forced to seek second opinions.
- Healthcare fraud costs the nation about $68 billion annually, which accounts for about 3% of the nation’s annual healthcare spending, according to The National Health Care Anti-Fraud Association.
- US life expectancy declines for third straight year. This phenomenon occurred once before from 1916-1918, largely due to the era’s flu epidemic.
- 42% of 15,000 physicians reported being burned out, according to data collected by Medscape’s annual Physician Lifestyle Report.
- 1 million more nurses are needed in the workforce in order to avoid further nurse shortages in the United States, according to The US Bureau of Labor Statistics.
- 6,112,867 individuals had their health information exposed, stolen, or disclosed between January 2018 and July 2018.
- CDC estimates that the total economic burden of prescription opioid misuse in the US is $78.5 billion a year.
- 635,260: number of deaths caused by heart disease in 2016.
- Johns Hopkins Hospital published a comprehensive study on medical errors that estimated 250,000 deaths per year occur as a result of medical error.
- The average cost per incidence of preventable harm in healthcare is roughly $58,776 per injury.
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