Issue link: https://beckershealthcare.uberflip.com/i/1334878
50 HEALTHCARE NEWS The most, least expensive states for an ER visit By Alia Paavola N ew Jersey hospitals charge the most for a moderate-severity emergency room visit requiring a single surgery, according to data from Hospital Pricing Spe- cialists provided to Becker's Hospital Review. For the analysis, Hospital Pricing Specialists collected 12 months of billing data, through June 30, from 4,570 hospitals across the U.S. to determine the average cost of an ER visit for moderate-severity cases that have a single surgery code. Moderate-severity ER visits are those that fall under the Current Procedural Termi- nology code 99283. e overall price tag includes charges for ER visits, single surgery codes, lab and radiology tests, pharmacy and supply costs, among other fees. Below, the 50 states and Washington, D.C., are ranked by the average charge of a moderate-severity ER visit with a single surgery code: 1. New Jersey — $3,750 2. Colorado — $3,377 3. Florida — $3,160 4. California — $2,969 5. Nevada — $2,694 6. Texas — $2,362 7. Arizona — $2,124 8. District of Columbia — $2,100 9. Virginia — $2,013 10. Delaware — $1,983 11. South Carolina — $1,958 12. Kentucky — $1,861 13. Hawaii — $1,846 14. Tennessee — $1,838 15. New Hampshire — $1,811 16. Illinois — $1,804 17. Mississippi — $1,788 18. New York — $1,786 19. Indiana — $1,760 20. New Mexico — $1,748 21. Missouri — $1,733 22. Washington — $1,713 23. Oklahoma — $1,690 24. Rhode Island — $1,639 25. Alabama — $1,628 26. Pennsylvania — $1,628 27. North Carolina — $1,626 28. Georgia — $1,618 29. Idaho — $1,585 30. Oregon — $1,585 31. South Dakota — $1,571 32. Alaska — $1,552 33. Utah — $1,541 34. Ohio — $1,514 35. Connecticut — $1,495 36. Nebraska — $1,445 37. Arkansas — $1,395 38. Wisconsin — $1,369 39. Vermont — $1,283 40. Massachusetts — $1,256 41. Kansas — $1,232 42. Michigan — $1,197 43. Minnesota — $1,191 44. Iowa — $1,173 45. Wyoming — $1,171 46. Louisiana — $1,157 47. West Virginia — $1,087 48. Maine — $965 49. North Dakota — $964 50. Montana — $961 51. Maryland — $710 n Record number of US workers are calling in sick By Molly Gamble T he number of U.S. workers calling in sick reached record highs in 2020 and may stay that way until COVID-19 vaccines are widely distributed, accord- ing to Bloomberg. The number of people currently in the labor force who are out sick, known as absenteeism, has doubled in the pandemic. Almost 1.8 million workers were absent in No- vember because of illness, nearly level with the record of 2 million from April, according to Labor Department data. The latest Household Pulse Survey, a separate survey con- ducted by the Census Bureau, estimates that more than 11 million people weren't working because of COVID-19. The figures, based on responses in late November and early De- cember, include those who did not report to work because they were worried about contracting or transmitting the virus and those caring for someone with COVID-19 symptoms. Employee absenteeism is slowing the economic recov- ery in the U.S. and leading to supply chain disruptions. Manufacturing is especially affected by temporarily absent workers. Some employees' decisions to call in sick were made easier in 2020 due in part to the Families First Coronavirus Re- sponse Act, which was signed into law by President Donald Trump in March. It allows two weeks of paid sick leave for certain employees and permits leave for those who must care for a child and are unable to work as a result. The latest stimulus bill includes an extension of the act through March 31, but makes paid leave voluntary for employers rather than mandatory as it was in the first iteration. The act excludes essential workers. n