Mean hospital charges in 2013 for hospital stays with a diagnosis of spinal cord injury or disease were $80,700, with a mean stay of just over 8 days. Total hospital charges in 2013 were $25.7 million. Due to the severity of spinal cord injuries and diseases, this is only a small part of overall health care costs that usually last a lifetime. (Reference Table 6B.2.1 PDF [1] CSV [2]and Table 6B.2.2 PDF [3] CSV [4])
The average expense for the first year of injury in 2015 dollars, including health care costs and living expenses, ranges from $347,900 for the lowest level of injury to $1.1 million for a high tetraplegia. Average yearly expenses for each subsequent year of survival range from $42,300 to $185,100. These costs do not include indirect costs such as lost wages, fringe benefits, and productivity, which were estimated to be over $72,000 per year.1 In addition, there is significant economic and emotional burden to spouses and other family members.
Links:
[1] https://www.boneandjointburden.org/docs/bmus_e4_T6B.2.1.pdf
[2] https://www.boneandjointburden.org/docs/bmus_e4_T6B.2.1.csv
[3] https://www.boneandjointburden.org/docs/bmus_e4_T6B.2.2.pdf
[4] https://www.boneandjointburden.org/docs/bmus_e4_T6B.2.2.csv
[5] https://www.nscisc.uab.edu/Public/Facts%202016.pdf