Current statistics are out regarding dog bites in the United States over the last year. A study published in 2010 showed that the number of people in America hospitalized for dog bites has nearly doubled over the last 15 years.
A few years back, over 300,000 people were sent to the emergency room with dog bites. That's a rate of over 100 visits per a population of 100,000 people. About 9,500 people were hospitalized for dog bites in the same year.
People sent to the emergency room with dog bites were slightly more likely to be male but the gender divide became equal when it came to hospital stays for dog bite injuries. All in all, hospital stays that were related to dog bites cost an average of over $18,000, about 50% more than the typical injury-related hospital stay. Over 40% of hospital stays related to dog bites were billed to private insurers.
In terms of age, nearly three quarters of people sent to the emergency room with a dog bite were under the age of 44, but that number falls to about 50% when looking at hospital stays for dog bite injuries.
As you can see, dog bites are quite prevalent and serious. Therefore, if you have been bitten by a dog and believe negligence was to blame, contact the Lanier Law Group, P.A. and discuss your options with a North Carolina personal injury lawyer.