By Cate Powers, ACEs Aware, February 28, 2020
The California Surgeon General today shares new research from
the Pacific Institute for Research & Evaluation (PIRE) that identifies the health-related costs of Adverse Childhood Experiences and toxic stress to California cost $112.5 billion annually. This estimate includes direct ACEs-related health care expenditures totaling $10.5 billion annually, with an additional $102 billion in the cost of disease burden, including premature death and years of productive life lost to disability.
Additional key findings on the cost to California include:
- The annual direct healthcare expenditures due to ACEs is $10.5 billion, and the cost in disability and years of productive life lost to ACEs equals $102 billion, for a total annual cost of $112.5 billion.
- Researchers analyzed five ACEs-linked conditions (asthma, arthritis, COPD, depression, and cardiovascular disease) and three health risk factors (lifetime smoking, heavy drinking, and obesity).
- The study controlled for the effect of health risk factors, and the strong relationship between ACEs and negative health outcomes persisted net of health risk factors.
- The researchers found that any exposure to ACEs, which include abuse and neglect, was linked to an increase in risky behaviors and life-threatening diseases.
- A higher number of ACEs translates to higher costs. Only 16% of the population have 4+ ACEs, but they account for 36% of total ACEs-related healthcare costs.
- 15% of the state’s healthcare spending related to ACEs is for ACE-related health risk factors (smoking, heavy drinking and obesity).
Updated data from the California Department of Public Health indicates that the prevalence of ACEs in California has increased since 2013. The 2017 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS, 2017) reports that 63.5 percent of Californians have experienced at least one of the ACEs as compared to 61 percent in 2013, and 17.6 percent of Californians have experienced four or more.
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