Treating unvaccinated covid patients costs millions. Economists have now warned of the immense costs to the healthcare system. As reported by Die Welt on Friday, calculations by the Kiel Institute for the World Economy (IfW) have shown that medical treatment of the unvaccinated has cost at least 120 million euros since July.

The calculations were based on data from the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) and the average inpatient treatment costs for Corona patients of 10,200 euros reported by the AOK. This results in costs of approximately 20 million euros for July, 70 million for August and 30 million for the first two weeks of September, which were incurred by the treatment of unvaccinated adults in hospitals. According to the IfW, the sharp increase in August can be explained primarily by the greater incidence of infection.

According to the report, however, the actual costs could be significantly higher. According to the IfW, this is due on the one hand to the subsequent correction of the hospitalization rate by the RKI, whereby the figures would be corrected upward by a third on average after a few weeks. In addition, it could be that the average costs of an inpatient corona illness underestimate the true costs. In addition, there could be costs arising from long-term consequential damage. However, these cannot yet be calculated.

Long-Covid: Rehab and consequential damage are a burden on the healthcare system

According to the World Report, the chairman of the German Hospital Association, Gerald Gaß, also spoke of high consequential costs due to severe covid disease: "For intensively treated covid patients, we assume a rehab rate of almost 100 percent." There are indications that consequential damages will continue to occupy the health care system. While exact data on the follow-up treatment of Corona patients is not yet available, he said. "However, it can be assumed that virtually every patient will continue to be cared for by physicians in private practice after their inpatient stays," Gaß told Die Welt.

But it's not just the immediate treatment costs that burden health insurers. "In addition to the costs in the healthcare system, the pandemic continues to cause high economic costs," Gabriel Felbermayr, president of IfW Kiel, told Welt. "Uncertainty slows down consumption and investment. If government constraints remain in place because of the pandemic and people remain fearful, the economic costs are so high that almost any government investment in pandemic containment and prevention is worthwhile," Felbermayr said.

Photo by Mufid Majnun