Violence Costs $70 Billion, 50,000 U.S. Deaths Annually
CDC's National Center for Injury Prevention and Control released a report June 11 that estimated the cost of injuries and deaths caused by violence in 2000. Total costs exceeded $70 billion, with $64.8 billion (92 percent) attributed to lost productivity. Another $5.6 billion went to medical care for 2.5 million injured Americans, the report said.
The annual death and injury toll is bleak: NCIPC said violence causes about 50,000 deaths and 2.5 million injuries per year. The cost of homicides is $37 billion annually, while the cost of suicides is $33 billion annually. People ages 15 to 44 are 44 percent of the U.S. population but account for nearly 75 percent of injuries and 83 percent of costs due to interpersonal violence, according to the report.
The authors recommend improving emergency trauma care and acute treatment of injuries related to violence; implement early prevention strategies for interpersonal and self-inflicted violence; and address individual, family, school, and community risks for violence and take advantage of evidence-based prevention strategies, which have proven to help reduce the risk.