Continued from the last post, this post will explore the results of the CDC study and estimate the actual burden of these waterborne diseases. There were 6,630 deaths attributed to waterborne diseases. Legionnaires disease had the second highest number of deaths of the 17 waterborne illnesses studied. Legionnaires disease also had the second highest cost per hospital stay of all the illnesses at approximately $37,200. The 17 waterborne diseases incurred $3.33 billion in total hospitalization and emergency department costs. This amount included $1.33 billion in commercial insurer payments, $1.52 billion in Medicare payments, and $284 million in Medicaid payments. 7,150,000 illnesses attributed to waterborne illness occurred in the United States. There were 601,000 treat-and-release emergency department visits related to waterborne illnesses, and 118,000 hospitalizations due to waterborne illnesses. The diseases included in this analysis were campylobacteriosis, cryptosporidiosis, giardiasis, Legionnaires’ disease, NTM infection, norovirus infection, acute otitis externa, Pseudomonas pneumonia and septicemia, Shiga toxin–producing Escherichia coli (STEC) infection serotype O157, non-O157 serotype STEC infection, salmonellosis, shigellosis, and vibriosis The results demonstrated the burden these waterborne illnesses have on the United States economically as well as highlighted the strain on the healthcare system. The study concludes that the findings should serve as a foundation for improved disease prevention and help measure the progress in the prevention of waterborne diseases in the United States. THE MATERIALS ON THIS WEBSITE HAVE BEEN PREPARED BY JULES ZACHER, P.C. FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY AND ARE NOT LEGAL ADVICE OR A SUBSTITUTE FOR LEGAL COUNSEL. 