Poison Centers have been providing vital poison exposure and information services in the United States for more than 70 years. Answering close to three million calls a year, centers save countless lives and millions of tax dollars. Currently, there are 53 Poison Centers in the U.S. that collectively serve all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the Federated States of Micronesia, American Samoa, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Guam.
Poison Help Hotline: 1-800-222-1222 Poison Centers provide free, confidential, and expert medical advice via the Poison Help hotline: 1-800-222-1222. Each Poison Center answers calls to Poison Help from a designated geographic area, including calls from the public, hospitals, EMTs, and other health care providers. All calls are answered by physicians, pharmacists, nurses, and other medical professionals with specific training in toxicology. This free and confidential service operates 24 hours a day, every day of the year. Poison Centers provide free, confidential, expert advice via the 24-hour national toll-free Poison Help line. Poison Centers provide immediate poison information and emergency instructions to all callers regardless of health insurance, immigration status, or language preference from any U.S. telephone or cell phone. Calls are answered by physicians, nurses and pharmacists with highly specialized training in poison management. Poison Center services are accessible to all populations, including under-served and undocumented groups, those speaking one of 150 languages and those utilizing telecommunication devices for the
hearing-impaired (
TDD/TTY). More than 70 percent of all cases received by Poison Centers can be safely and effectively treated at home, without need for further medical care.
Cost Savings for the Health-Care System Substantial cost savings have been attributed to Poison Center reductions in unnecessary
emergency department (ED) care through accurate assessment and
triage of poisoning exposures. The public health and cost benefits from Poison Center
pre-hospital management of patients not needing ED visits favorably impacts the self-pay or co-paying general public, the health-care institution supporting the costs of indigent care, the commercial insurance companies and governmental health-care funding agencies. Poison Centers assess and manage more than 70 percent of poison exposures over the phone, eliminating the need for callers to seek further medical care. This reduction in medically unnecessary ED visits decreases hospital overcrowding and minimizes unnecessary ambulance runs, freeing critical emergency staff to handle true emergencies more effectively. ==National Poison Data System (NPDS)==