Racial minorities bear a much higher cost burden than White patients for unplanned hospital visits after breast reconstruction surgery

Racial minorities bear a much higher cost burden than White patients for  unplanned hospital visits after breast reconstruction surgery, according to a study of more than 17,000 patients. Researchers could not identify from the data they analyzed why the women had undergone breast reconstruction.

Black women were charged an average of $2,840 more than White women, Hispanic women $2,380 more, and Asian and Native American/Alaska Native women $8,103 more.

Unplanned hospital visits after a variety if elective preocedures are an indicator of surgical care quality, the researchers observed. Minority women may have faced differences in access to care and the provision of care.

• See “Racial Disparities Seen for Cost of Unplanned Care After Breast Reconstruction” by Lori Solomon on the HealthDay website (August 2, 2023)
• See the full text of the scientific paper “Racial Disparities in the Cost of Unplanned Hospitalizations after Breast Reconstruction” by Jacob S Nasser et al.