Health Affairs April 1, 2024
Abstract
In New Jersey, universal screening for perinatal depression at the time of delivery has resulted in a 95 percent screening rate. The widespread availability of screening data allowed me to investigate the association between perinatal depression severity and infant emergency department (ED) use and charges in the first year of life. I used birth records linked to hospital discharge records for the period 2016–19. Compared with infants who had mothers with no symptoms, infants with mothers with mild or moderate/severe depressive symptoms had significantly higher overall and nonemergent ED use, but not significantly higher emergent ED use. The positive associations between depressive symptoms and ED charges were particularly striking for infants with Medicaid, which pays for a disproportionate share...
Today's Sponsors
Today's Sponsor