The Financial Drain of Pool Tragedies

Their tragic falls into back-yard pools bring searing pain to their families. But the cost of trying to revive young children who drown, or care for those who nearly drown, is measured not only in anguish but in millions of dollars every year.

Each year across the nation, about 350 children under the age of 5 drown and emergency rooms treat another 4,200 for “submersion,” the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission estimates.

And the “societal costs” for children under 5 who have drowned or suffered near-drowning is “in excess of $1 billion a year,” said Lee Baxter, the commission’s western regional director.

In California, about 300 children now live with permanent disability--including breathing problems and brain damage--after a near-drowning incident.

Of these, 77 are being cared for this year in state hospitals at a cost of at least $100,000 per year per child. And home care for these children can average more than $10,000 per month per child.

Typically, one to two months of hospitalization for a child who nearly drowned costs about $90,000 and care after that--typically for another 18 months until the child dies from a complication like pneumonia--is another $97,000, safety commission officials said.