COVID-19 Costs: An Example of Province in Turkey

INTRODUCTION: The Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic continues to negatively affect Turkey, as it does many other areas all over the world. One effect of COVID 19 has been the significant expenditure increases in health services in post-pandemic countries. Our aim for this study was the following: determining the frequency of outpatient, inpatient, and intensive care treatment in COVID 19 cases, the factors affecting the rates of inpatient and, intensive care treatments, and examining the changes in healthcare costs according to patient characteristics. METHODS: This research is a cross-sectional record review. The universe of this study is composed of outpatients and inpatients that have been treated after being diagnosed with COVID 19 as from March 11, the date the pandemic was first seen in Turkey, to November 30, 2020. Within the scope of the study, data relating to the COVID-19 diagnosis, comorbidity, age (< 50 and 50), and gender were obtained from all primary, secondary, and tertiary healthcare institutions in the province. RESULTS: When the invoices of the inpatients who received no intensive care treatment were examined, it was found that the bills of the male patients aged 50 years and older and those with comorbidities were statistically significantly higher. In the patient groups receiving both clinical and intensive care, the mean amount of invoices of female patients and those aged 50 and older were found to be higher than male patients (p < 0.05). In addition to, In all other patient groups, it has been determined that the invoice amounts are below the patient costs, that is, the invoice amounts do not cover the patient cost. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: The disease is more severe in those aged 50 and older, those with comorbidities, and it is more severe and more common in males. Consequently, bill amounts and costs of these patients were found to be higher than those of the opposing groups. As a result, the rate of men getting the COVID-19 disease is higher than women. The disease is more severe in males in hospitalized patients, in 50 age group, and in patients with comorbidities. In parallel with these, the invoice amounts and costs of these patients are higher than the opposite groups. In general, the treatment costs of the patients are higher than the invoice amounts and they carry great risks for the future in ensuring the sustainability of the service. Ensuring sustainability in healthcare services depends on the ability of healthcare institutions to obtain invoices to cover their costs. COVID-19 not only creates a big economic burden for reimbursement institutions but also brings a great economic burden for the institutions that provide the service.