Sepsis-Related Hospital Stays Increased Nearly 40% from 2016-2021
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April 2025
AHRQ uses NORC’s analysis of U.S. hospital care data to release important statistics on sepsis and healthcare-associated infections.
A recent congressional report developed by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) with NORC’s analytic support revealed a startling statistic: From 2016-2021, sepsis-related inpatient stays rose from 1.8 million to 2.5 million, a nearly 40 percent increase. Further, in 2021, one in six patients with sepsis died in the hospital, and among sepsis hospital encounters involving septic shock, one in three stays resulted in death. The report also highlights health disparities and geographic variation in sepsis caseloads and total hospital costs.
The sepsis report is just one of many products resulting from NORC’s extensive analysis of data from AHRQ’s Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP), the nation's largest repository of detailed hospital care information. AHRQ also released seven HCUP Statistical Briefs focused on sepsis and health care-associated infections (HAIs) in 2024. The briefs provide descriptive statistics that demonstrate variation among hospital encounters involving sepsis or HAIs based on key patient demographics. Such demographics include location, race, and ethnicity—as well as hospital characteristics such as rurality and teaching status.
HCUP provides unparalleled longitudinal hospital care data.
Since 1988, state and private data organizations, hospital associations, and the federal government have submitted encounter-level hospital care data to HCUP through a voluntary partnership. Researchers can access decades of comprehensive data on inpatient stays, emergency department visits, and ambulatory care from 48 states and the District of Columbia via diverse HCUP Databases, software tools, and related resources, including:
- HCUPnet: an online query system that provides access to annual statistics on hospital inpatient and emergency department settings as well as population-based healthcare data on counties
- HCUP Fast Stats: an online query tool with data visualizations that are updated regularly to provide timely access to the latest annual and quarterly national and state-level statistics on a range of healthcare topics
- HCUP Research Tools: complementary tools and software to use with HCUP and other administrative databases to enhance a researcher’s ability to conduct analyses
- HCUP Reports: publications, technical reports, and findings on HCUP issues
AHRQ tasked NORC with managing the multifaceted HCUP system.
In 2022, AHRQ contracted NORC to maintain and enhance HCUP. We assist the agency by leveraging HCUP data to respond to research requests and share analyses on many pressing health care topics. Topics have ranged from maternal health to opioid-related hospital use to non-fatty liver disease. We also create accessible HCUP datasets, provide technical assistance to AHRQ, existing partners, and the public, and cultivate new partnerships to expand HCUP’s reach and impact.
“NORC’s expertise in managing complex data systems, combined with our collaborative approach, has already elevated HCUP’s impact,” said Jennifer Titus, a principal research director in NORC’s Health Sciences department. “We’ve seen HCUP data inform policy discussions and shaping media narratives.”
NORC successfully transitioned a 30-year project and accomplished the following:
- Created nine nationwide databases and hundreds of state databases for AHRQ’s own use and public release
- Generated statistics for eight online dashboards and both 2023 and 2024 National Healthcare Quality and Disparities Reports
- Published three methodology reports
- Completed 17 quick-turnaround analytic requests
- Responded to over 2,500 requests for assistance through HCUP’s Support Center
“NORC’s expertise in managing complex data systems, combined with our collaborative approach, has already elevated HCUP’s impact. We’ve seen HCUP data inform policy discussions and shaping media narratives.”
HCUP data can advance health and hospital care and reduce costs.
By collecting granular information at local, state, and national levels, HCUP allows researchers and decision-makers to further examine and understand critical health and hospital care issues. Doing so opens the door to refining or creating targeted initiatives to improve patient outcomes and reduce the financial burden on health care institutions. But only if stakeholders are aware of HCUP.
“Our team is committed to helping AHRQ make this high-quality, evidence-based resource accessible to an even wider range of researchers, health care stakeholders, and policymakers, further amplifying its influence on health care decision-making,” said Titus.
In the next couple of years, HCUP intends to expand the number of participating state partners and streamline processes for faster and more timely availability of data. It will also continue supporting the emerging data needs of federal partners and the community of researchers and policymakers who rely on HCUP for timely, accurate, and objective data.
This article is from our flagship newsletter, NORC Now. NORC Now keeps you informed of the full breadth of NORC’s work, the questions we help our clients answer, and the issues we help them address.
