Economic Costs of ACEs in Alaska

Alaska is facing an historic budget deficit which is requiring the Legislative and Executive branches to focus on cost reduction and revenue enhancement. These two goals can be uniquely addressed by a focus on the real and opportunity costs associated with ACEs. ACEs impact both sides of Alaska's ledger. Increased cost as a result of ACEs for all kinds of health and social problems have been discussed often but what is often lost in the discussion is the missed revenue because people with higher ACE scores tend to be more likely to make less money, be unemployed and have less education. ACEs are a hidden economic driver. The Alaska Mental Health Board and Advisory Board on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse recognize the need to partner with all Alaskans. Business leaders, local elected officials and many others don't realize the opportunities to decrease costs and increase revenues a focus on ACE reduction and mitigation offer. These two Alaskan boards are sharing the data to show that what happens during childhood can be put on the expense or revenue side of the ledger - it's up to us. Strong childhoods are money in the bank. Read the Board's document on the Economic Costs of ACEs in Alaska at http://dhss.alaska.gov/abada/a...EconomicCosts-AK.pdf