Big bill for tiny babes; In association with the NHS.THE cost of premature birth premature birth Birth less than 37 weeks after conception. Infants born as early as 23–24 weeks may survive but many face lifelong disabilities (e.g., cerebral palsy, blindness, deafness). in England and Wales England and Wales are both constituent countries of the United Kingdom, that together share a single legal system: English law. Legislatively, England and Wales are treated as a single unit (see State (law)) for the conflict of laws. is pounds 939m per year and rising, a study suggests. Delaying all premature births by just one week could save pounds 260m every year, it added. Researchers based the cost on the needs for specialist healthcare, hospital re-admissions, outpatient visits, special educational needs and social services, up to the age of 18. On average, each premature baby costs one-and-a-half times more than an infant born at full term. The study, published in the journal Paediatrics, was funded by the research charity Tommy's. |
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