Contact: Joe Martin
717-232-6787 or
PHC4 RELEASES 2018 HOSPITAL FINANCIAL REPORT â UNCOMPENSATED CARE LEVELS DECREASED 2.0%
Harrisburg, PA – May 14, 2019 – The foregone dollar value for Pennsylvania general acute care hospitalsâ uncompensated care has decreased in fiscal year 2018 (FY18) from $766 million in FY17 to $750 million in FY18. âThe statewide percent of uncompensated care to net patient revenue has been steadily decreasing for the past five years,â said Joe Martin, executive director at PHC4. The percent of uncompensated care to net patient revenue decreased from 1.76% in FY17 to 1.66% in FY18.
The report shows that the foregone dollar value of uncompensated careâuncollectible debt and charity careâprovided by hospitals in the Commonwealth decreased by 2.0% in FY18, or $16 million, to a total of $750 million. âFor FY18, the percent of statewide uncompensated care has fallen to 1.66% of reported net patient revenue, although 39% of Pennsylvania hospitals posted a negative operating margin,â said Mr. Martin.
The statewide total margin realized by the hospitals in Pennsylvania decreased by 0.05 percentage points, from 6.67% in FY17 to 6.62% in FY18, and the statewide operating margin decreased 0.39 percentage points from 5.15% in FY17 to 4.76% in FY18. The statewide operating income for Pennsylvania hospitals decreased from $2.4 billion in FY17 to $2.3 billion in FY18.
Report highlights:
- Net Patient Revenue: The revenue hospitals received for patient care increased 3.9% during FY18. Statewide net patient revenue was $45.3 billion during FY18, making up 94% of statewide hospital total operating revenue.
- Patient Accounts Receivable: On a statewide basis, the amount of time the average bill remained in accounts receivable increased from 45 days in FY17 to 46 days in FY18.
- Operating Margin: Statewide operating income decreased from $2.4 billion in FY17 to $2.3 billion in FY18. As a result, the statewide average operating margin decreased from 5.15% in FY17 to 4.76% in FY18. Total operating revenue increased to $48.0 billion and operating expenses increased to $45.7 billion in FY18.
- Total Margin: The statewide total margin realized by the hospitals decreased slightly by 0.05 percentage points, from 6.67% in FY17 to 6.62% in FY18.
- Uncompensated Care: The statewide percentage of uncompensated care to net patient revenue has been steadily decreasing each year since FY13. The percent of uncompensated care to net patient revenue decreased from 1.76% in FY17 to 1.66% in FY18. The foregone dollar value for statewide uncompensated care has fallen from $766 million in FY17 to $750 million in FY18.
The Volume One Financial Analysis 2018 of General Acute Care hospitals is the first of a three part series of reports PHC4 publishes annually. Volume Two, focused on Ambulatory Surgery Centers and Volume Three on non-GAC hospitals, which will be released later this year.
PHC4 is an independent state agency charged with collecting, analyzing and reporting information about the cost and quality of health care in Pennsylvania. Copies of Financial Analysis 2018, Volume One are free and available from PHC4âs website at www.phc4.org.
