(Important: This section applies only to individuals who were admitted to one of the hospitals designated as "Model" SCI centers by the National Institute of Disability and Rehabilitation Research.)

Over 37% of all cases admitted to the Spinal Cord Injury System sponsored by the NIDRR arrive within 24 hours of injury. The mean time between injury and admission is 6 days.

Only 10-15% of all people with injuries are admitted to the NIDRR SCI system. The remainder go to CARF facilities or to general hospitals in their local community.

It is now known that the length of stay and hospital charges for acute care and initial rehabilitation are higher for cases where admission to the SCI system is delayed beyond 24 hours.
Average length of stay (1992):

Quadriplegics 95 days
Paraplegics 67 days
All 79 days

Average charges (1990 dollars) Note: Specific cases are considerably higher.

Quadriplegics $118,900
Paraplegics $ 85,100
All $ 99,553

Source of payment acute care:

Private Insurance 53%
Medicaid 25%
Self-pay 1%
Vocational Rehab 14%
Worker's Comp 12%
Medicare 5%
Other 2%

Ongoing medical care: (Many people have more than one source of payment.)

Private Insurance 43%
Medicare 25%
Self-pay 2%
Medicaid 31%
Worker's Compensation 11%
Vocational Rehab 16%