The year is off to an unfriendly start for hospital finances, with a median margin of -1 percent for January, worsening from the margin recorded a month prior, according to Kaufman Hall.
The finding comes from Kaufman Hall’s latest “National Flash Hospital Report” — based on data from more than 900 hospitals. The -1 percent margin captured in January arrives on the heels of 2022 being the worst financial year for hospitals and health systems since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Hospitals recorded decreased patient volumes, emergency department visits, discharges and total revenues in January 2023 compared to the month prior while expenses ticked upward, Becker’s reports. Month-over-month, total net operating revenue decreased by 3 percent while total expenses rose by 1 percent, with total labor expenses increasing by 3 percent.
Another contributing factor to the negative median margin is the ordinary trend of hospitals making purchases for the year in January, Kaufman Hall analysts noted. Read more.
