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Show General Health Status Hospital Charges by Major Disease Category Compiled by Rick Henriksen, Angie Finlinson, and Kristien McDonald Hospital changes by major disease category have been compiled by the Utah Department of Health and listed in the Hospital Discharge Data Standard Report of 2001. The report is designed as a tool for analysis of health care issues. Consumers, employers, payers, policy makers, and providers use these data to make general health care decisions. The two billion dollars charged by Utah hospitals in 2001 represent the pre-contractual charge, not the actual money received for services. The major disease categories (MDCs) are broken down into diagnosis-related groups (DRG), which provide the basis for assigning a uniform charge for specific services. Table 1 lists the nine most costly of the twenty-five MDCs in 2001. These nine MDCs account for approximately 94% of the total charges. Figure 1 displays the percent breakdown of these most common MDCs. These data are used to determine which diseases use the most of Utah's financial resources. Areas of MDCs can be targeted for improvement in treatment as well as prevention in order to reduce expenditures. Table 19. Total Hospital Charges in Utah by MDC, 2001. Major Diagnostic Category (MDC) Charges ($) Percent Mental Diseases and Disorders 64,075,416.67 3.2% Hepatobiliary System and Pancreas 68,340,183.55 3.4% Nervous System 117,686,018.18 5.9% Respiratory System 165,441,562.64 8.3% Digestive System 173,863,134.19 8.7% Newborn and Other Neonates 174,028,628.20 8.7% Pregnancy, Childbirth, Puerperium 200,144,220.01 10.0% Musculoskeletal System 284,495,072.08 14.2% Circulatory System 353,208,503.08 17.6% All Other MDCs 399,797,240.05 20.0% Total 2,001,079,978.65 100.0% Figure 1. Percentage of Utah Hospital Charges by Selected MDC, 2001. Hepatobiliary System and Pancreas Menta| Diseases and Disorders 3% Newborn and Other, Neonates 3% All Other MDCs 20% Pregnancy, Childbirth, Puerperium 10% Musculoskeletal System 14% Nervous System 6% Respiratory System 8% Digestive System 9% Circulatory System 18% Sources: Utah Health Data Committee (2003). 2001 Utah Inpatient Hospital Utilization and Charges Profile-Hospital Detail. Salt Lake City, UT: Utah Health Data Committee. [On-line] http.//healih. Utah,gov/iIns-ph/ Utah's Health: An Annual Review Volume DC |