State and National Estimates of the Cost of Emergency Department Pediatric Readiness and Lives Saved

From JAMA:

Key Points

Question  What are the state and national costs of raising all emergency departments (EDs) to high pediatric readiness and the potential number of lives saved?

Findings  In this cohort study of 4840 EDs across the US, 842 (17.4%) had high pediatric readiness and the annual cost to reach high pediatric readiness was $207 335 302, ranging from $0 to $11.84 per child by state. An estimated 2143 pediatric lives may be saved each year through universal high ED pediatric readiness.

Meaning  These results suggest that raising all EDs to high pediatric readiness would potentially save thousands of pediatric lives each year, with modest financial investment.