Hospital Charges

Mean hospital charges for AORC-associated hospitalizations were $5,500 higher than those for all hospitalizations, with the differences driven primarily by females and those younger than 65 years of age. Total charges for AORC-associated hospitalizations were $291 billion, comprising 23% of all hospital charges in 2011. This percentage was relatively consistent for all sex and age groups except those 18 to 44 years of age. Among the 10 AORC subgroups, osteoarthritis accounted for $135 billion, or 46% of total charges for AORC-associated hospitalizations. (Reference Table 4.4 PDF [1] CSV [2])