OBJECTIVES: Evaluate healthcare utilization/costs associated with pediatric Crohn's disease (PCD). METHODS: Claims for HMO patients assigned to HealthCare Partners Medical Group from six commercial health plans in Southern California were analyzed, which identified patients <18 who were newly diagnosed with PCD (ICD-9 555.x) for this analysis. Patients were required to have 6-months pre and 12-months post continuous eligibility from disease index date. Cost and resource utilization were compared to a cohort of non-PCD claimants, matched to the PCD cohort on age, sex, and birthday (within 30 days of age/sex matched PCD patients). Statistical significance was not assessed due to small sample size. RESULTS: Sixty-two PCD patients were identified; 30 met the eligibility criteria; 56.7% were female and median age at diagnosis was 13. The comparator group included 10,864 children. The total per member per month (PMPM) cost for PCD patients was $2547.32 (70% attributable to PCD), as compared with $166.07 PMPM for the non-PCD cohort. There were 500 admissions per thousand members per year (PTMPY) for the PCD group as compared with 11.2 for the comparator cohort. The average length of stay was 7.6 days for the PCD cohort versus 4.4 days for the comparators. Inpatient stay PMPM cost was $1409.41 for the PCD cohort versus $18.16 for the comparators. CONCLUSION: PCD is associated with much higher levels of resource utilization and costs of care, primarily driven by inpatient stays, compared with a matched group of children without PCD. Treating PCD appropriately before the disease progresses to a level requiring hospitalization may help reduce costs.