For the first time in 35 years, hospital outpatient volume declined in 2019.
Despite the trend toward delivery of more health care in outpatient settings, hospitals saw fewer outpatients in 2019 as more people turned to urgent care settings and other clinics for outpatient services.
Much of the decline was in emergency room visits, with patients also turning to urgent care facilities for non-emergency services they traditionally sought in hospital ERs.
Despite the decline in volume, hospitals saw their net outpatient revenue rise 4.5 percent in 2019.
Learn more about what is happening to hospital outpatient volume in the HealthCare Business News article “Outpatient visits down for first time in 35 years.”