Supervised consumption site enables cost savings by avoiding emergency services: a cost analysis study.

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Health Economics
• Harm Reduction

Background:

• Supervised consumption services (SCS) are increasingly recognized for their role in mitigating harms associated with drug use.
• Emergency service utilization for overdose events represents a significant cost to healthcare systems.
• Understanding the economic impact of SCS in preventing emergency service use is crucial for policy and resource allocation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To conduct a cost analysis from a payer's perspective, quantifying emergency service costs avoided through on-site overdose management at SCS.
• To determine the financial benefits of SCS in reducing the need for ambulance pre-hospital care and emergency department treatment for overdoses.

Main Methods:

• A cost analysis was performed using population-level data from November 2017 to January 2020.
• Costs assessed included operational expenses of SCS, ambulance care for unrevived overdoses, emergency department treatment, and benefits of averted costs from on-site overdose management.
• Data were sourced from government health databases, focusing on a single-payer model.

Main Results:

• The proportion of overdoses managed on-site at SCS increased to 98% over the program's duration.
• Each overdose successfully managed at SCS resulted in approximately $1600 CAD in cost savings.
• The program generated total cost savings exceeding $2.3 million over its 2 years and 3 months of operation.

Conclusions:

• On-site overdose management at supervised consumption services (SCS) generates substantial cost savings.
• SCS effectively offsets the costs associated with emergency department and pre-hospital ambulance services for overdose events.
• Investing in SCS represents a cost-effective strategy for harm reduction and healthcare system efficiency.