Health Care Costs Associated With Norovirus at the Veterans Health Administration

What are the outpatient, emergency department (ED), and inpatient health care costs associated with laboratory-confirmed norovirus episodes among veterans seeking care at the Veterans Health Administration (VHA)?In this economic evaluation involving 7768 medically attended norovirus episodes, the median per-episode cost was highest for norovirus episodes that required hospitalization compared with outpatient and ED episodes. The annual extrapolated costs to the VHA were substantial at approximately $28 million.Norovirus has a substantial economic burden in the VHA, and cost savings are possible from developing norovirus vaccines or antivirals for this adult population.

Corresponding Author: Jordan Cates, PhD, 1600 Clifton Rd NE, Atlanta, GA 30333 (ntm6@cdc.gov).

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