Hospitals finished 2024 in generally good financial condition, according to a new report.
Hospital net revenue rose six percent in 2024 and outpatient revenue was up 10 percent, according to the report.
With expenses rising but at a rate lower than inflation, hospitals ended 2024 with average operating margins of 7.6 percent – their highest rate for the year.
At the same time, however, bad debt and charity care increased, most likely because of the contraction of Medicaid eligibility following the end of pandemic-related eligibility expansion and the continued trend of insurers denying care. Thus, while the short-term financial outlook for hospitals is positive, their average margins were still lower than in 2021 as the year ended.
Learn more about the financial health of hospitals as they moved into 2025 from the Becker’s Hospital Review article “Hospital margins soar but finances not in a ‘fully sustainable position.’”