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Trauma is costing America hundreds of billions of dollars.
Individuals exposed to trauma are more likely to experience long-term higher risks, including impaired cognitive functioning, increased rates of depression, and higher risk for infection and chronic disease — all of which are expensive to diagnose and treat. Depression alone costs Americans approximately $210.5 billion per year, and trauma victims on Medicaid cost approximately 20% more to taxpayers than their non-traumatized peers.
Poverty is a form of trauma, and it exacerbates other existing traumas. Chronic stress resulting from poverty can create an over-reliance on the body’s fight-or-flight adrenal response, which can impact existing health risks already outlined for those experiencing additional traumas. Sadly, this issue is further exacerbated in Houston, where in 2018, the poverty rate was 20% — well above the national average.
Data from the National Child Traumatic Stress Network reveals that trauma inhibits learning. Research on children who have experienced trauma shows that they struggle to focus, problem solve, and pay attention compared to their non-traumatized peers. Trauma-exposed youth are far more prone to becoming involved in the justice system and experience homelessness, financial hardship, and rely on the use of social services as an adult. A 2022 study estimates that approximately 35,000 homeless adults in the U.S. are thought to be homeless due to PTSD, a factor that economists appraise at a cost of $869.1 million annually.
Our businesses are not exempt from the cost of trauma, as they are shown to spend more than $15,000 per worker for employees with mental health issues. Employees experiencing trauma also lose nearly $5,000 per year in wages due to absenteeism. Employees who are unable to stay employed due to trauma cost an average of $5,733 per employee to replace. These workers are in the workforce for fewer years, as exposure to trauma in early childhood reduces an individual’s life expectancy by 20 years.
As of May 2022, 89% of participating families at Family Scholar House (FSH), an organization in Houston focused on education as a primary path for ending the cycle of inherited poverty, indicate they have been exposed to at least one of the ten traumatic events categorized in the landmark CDC-Kaiser ACE study. The average FSH adult has experienced four of the ten traumas, including physical and sexual abuse, emotional abuse, domestic violence, substance abuse, and more. On average, FSH children older than five have already experienced three of the ten traumas. A plethora of research shows that individuals exposed to four or more ACEs are 2.4 times more likely to have a stroke, nearly twice as likely to have cancer, 12 times more likely to attempt suicide, and seven times more likely to become an alcoholic.
Earlier this year, through the generous support of The MolinaCares Accord, Family Scholar House launched its program in Houston, providing pre-residential and non-residential services for Houston-area residents. These comprehensive and holistic services are available for anyone interested in connecting to area resources and/or earning the degree or credentials needed for to enter a new career.
I urge you to view our newly-published white paper at www.familyscholarhouse.org/whitepapers, which includes research, video clips, and additional data. Trauma already costs this population, but you should know it’s costing you and your family as well. The Houston community needs support, and so does the economy. Join us today, so that the economic future of tomorrow is brighter for all.
Cathe Dykstra is the President, CEO, and Chief Possibility Officer for Family Scholar House, headquartered in Louisville, Ky with a Houston-based outreach program.
To connect with our FSH’s Houston staff call 346-399-6278 or 281-549-8681. To learn more about MolinaCares’ mission to improve health outcomes for Medicaid recipients across Texas, visit https://molinacares.com/state/texas/.