TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2019//
TI  - Costs and characteristics of undocumented immigrants brought to a trauma center by border patrol agents in southern Texas
JO  - Journal of emergencies, trauma and shock
A1  - Kane, Evan
A1  - Richman, Peter B.
A1  - Xu, K. Tom
A1  - Krall, Scott
A1  - Blow, Osbert
SP  - 54
EP  - 57
VL  - 12
IS  - 1
N2  - BACKGROUND: The objective of this study was to evaluate the costs, characteristics, and outcomes of patients brought to a Texas trauma center emergenct department after apprehension by Border Patrol (BP)/Immigration and Customs Enforcement (BP/ICE). <br><br>MATERIALS AND METHODS: This is a secondary analysis of a trauma registry/financial records (1/1/11-12/31/14). Data were extracted utilizing a structured form. A multivariate ordinary least square was estimated to identify variables associated with hospital charges. <br><br>RESULTS: A total of 128 patients were enrolled as the study group; mean age was 28.6 ± 6 years, 20.3% were female, 100% were Hispanic, the most common mechanism of injury (MOI) was motor vehicle crash (75%), and mean charge was $162,152 ± $295,441. Mean length of stay (LOS) was 13.2 ± 29.8 days; 92.2% survived to discharge. Bivariate analysis revealed that MOI differed by gender (<i>P</i> = 0.021). In the multivariate analysis, the only variable that associated with increased charge was LOS. Total charges for the 128 patients were $20.6M, total costs were $4.5M, and total payments were $0.99M. <br><br>CONCLUSIONS: Undocumented immigrants apprehended by BP/ICE and brought to our trauma center utilized significant health-care resources.<p />  <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 0974-2700
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.4103/JETS.JETS_29_18
ID  - ref1
ER  -