MMWR Summary for June 9, 2017

June 9, 2017

Hospitalizations for Endocarditis and Associated Health Care Costs Among Persons with Diagnosed Drug Dependence — North Carolina, 2010–2015

Cobey Culton

Office of Communications

North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services

Office: 919-855-4840  

cobey.culton@dhhs.nc.gov

Measures Taken to Prevent Zika Virus Infection During Pregnancy — Puerto Rico, 2016

CDC Media Relations

404-639-3286

Japanese Encephalitis Surveillance and Immunization — Asia and Western Pacific Regions, 2016

CDC Media Relations

404-639-3286

 Hospitalizations for Endocarditis and Associated Health Care Costs Among Persons with Diagnosed Drug Dependence — North Carolina, 2010–2015

Endocarditis is one of many serious and expensive outcomes of the ongoing opioid epidemic. Harm reduction strategies such as syringe service programs, safe injection education, and treatment programs will be critical to reducing these outcomes and their costs. The incidence of endocarditis is increasing rapidly, particularly among injection drug users who are younger, white, non-Hispanic, and from rural areas. Among patients hospitalized for endocarditis, 42 percent were uninsured or had Medicaid coverage, suggesting that the health care system and public payers are sharing a large proportion of the costs. In the context of the opioid epidemic, these findings suggest a need to focus efforts on harm reduction strategies such as syringe service programs, safe injection education, and treatment programs offering opioid agonist and antagonist therapies.

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