4/14/2021 cOASIS, The Online Abstract Submission System Print this Page for Your Records Close Window Control/Tracking Number: 2021-A-1725-ANA Activity: Abstracts Current Date/Time: 4/14/2021 8:54:20 PM Evaluation Of Crowd-sourced Fundraising To Cover Health Care Costs For Neurological Conditions In The United States Biographical Summary: Aafreen Azmi is a Clinical Research Coordinator at Massachusetts General Hospital. She graduated from Harvard College in 2020 with a BA in Computer Science. Author Block: Aafreen Azmi, BA, Matthew Abrego, -, Alana Allison, -, Ahmad Azmi, -, Priyadharsini Balasubramani, -, Tyesha Devil, -, Fatima Farooq, -, Saqib Khan, -, Altaf Saadi, MD. Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA. Abstract: Background: The annual cost of treating neurologic disorders in the US is greater than $800 billion. Both the rising costs of prescription medications, which show some of the steepest increases among neurologic drugs, as well as the aging of the American population have been implicated. Crowdfunding platforms have gained traction as patients search for alternate ways to finance their health care. Previous studies have examined the role of crowdfunding platforms in financing the care of cancer patients. We assessed the use of the GoFundMe crowdfunding platform among patients with neurological conditions. Methods: We used custom scripts for web-scraping to gather information about 11,274 medical campaigns on GoFundMe using a set of 15 search terms corresponding to the most common ICD-10 neurological conditions. The information gathered included the fundraising goal, amount raised, and the number of donors. Between December 2020 and March 8, 2021, 2,203 of these campaigns were coded using a data extraction tool to capture information i.e. neurological condition(s), patient demographics, and expenses cited. Analysis of remaining campaigns is anticipated to be completed in July 2021. Results: The majority of campaigns were for males (56.6%) and adults (66.5%). For patients whose insurance status was known (n=732), 74.6% had insurance and 25.4% did not. On average, the campaigns studied raised $17,019 (SD=$25,383) for a target average goal of https://www.abstractsonline.com/cSubmit/SubmitPrinterFriendlyVersion.asp?ControlKey=A6B364A1-FADF-4635-9057-535E722A10BC&MeetingActivityKey=%7… 1/2 4/14/2021 cOASIS, The Online Abstract Submission System $41,145 (SD=$234,066) with an average of 174 donors per campaign (SD=302). Traumatic brain injury represented the greatest share of campaigns (24.6%), followed by neuroinfectious diseases (18.3%), epilepsy (10.8%), and dementias (7.8%). Rehabilitation was the most common expense cited by campaigns (39.8%), followed by surgical expenses (32.8%), lost income (31.1%), transportation costs (21.0%), funerals (16.9%), and medication expenses (16.7%). Conclusions: This study highlights how many with neurological illness are relying on fundraising to cover their medical costs. Rehabilitation, surgery, and lost income are among the push factors toward using crowdfunding. Neurologists must work in concert with policymakers to address rising financial burdens among patients with neurological illness. Author Disclosure Information: A. Azmi: None. M. Abrego: None. A. Allison: None. A. Azmi: None. P. Balasubramani: None. T. Devil: None. F. Farooq: None. S. Khan: None. A. Saadi: None. Category (Complete): Global Neurology Disclosures Continued (Complete): By selecting yes below, you attest that you understand the importance of adhering to the Definition of CME and Content Integrity policies: Yes By selecting yes below, you attest that you understand the significance of and will notify staff immediately if you are offered or receive a direct payment or compensation from Ineligible Companies pertaining to this CME activity.: Yes By selecting yes below, you attest that you have permission to use all materials and information used during your presentation.: Yes Please type your name below to attest: : Aafreen Azmi Emerging Scholar Lecture (Complete): If you are an “Emerging Scholar” (a Resident, Fellow, or Junior Faculty Member within 5 years of initial appointment) would you like to be considered to present during one of the Emerging Scholar Lecture Series sessions?: No Keyword (Complete): Risk Factors Payment (Complete): Your credit card 7:18 PM. Status: Complete order has been processed on Wednesday 14 April 2021 at 1120 Route 73 Suite 200 Mount Laurel, NJ 08054 Phone: 856-380-6938 Feedback Powered by cOASIS, The Online Abstract Submission and Invitation System SM © 1996 - 2021 CTI Meeting Technology All rights reserved. Privacy Policy https://www.abstractsonline.com/cSubmit/SubmitPrinterFriendlyVersion.asp?ControlKey=A6B364A1-FADF-4635-9057-535E722A10BC&MeetingActivityKey=%7… 2/2