Officials Say WA State Hospital Financial Losses “Unsustainable”

A recent conference of hospital and health administrators in WA state indicates the situation for many facilities is precarious, and "unsustainable."

WA State Hospital Association lays out issues

According to Chief Health Executive.com, during a telecall Tuesday, officials laid out a grim financial picture for much of the hospital industry in WA.

They pointed to a number of factors that have contributed to continued losses and financial strain for most of the hospitals in our state. After somewhat of a rebound following COVID, most of the hospitals are operating at a negative-income level.

According to Chief Health Executive:

"Cumulatively, the state’s hospitals lost $3.8 billion in 2022 and 2023, said Eric Lewis, chief financial officer of the Washington State Hospital Association.

“These losses are unprecedented, unsustainable, and represent a huge-post COVID financial challenge,” Lewis said.

In 2023, the state’s hospitals had a -5.2% operating margin, which actually represents a bit of improvement from 2022, when the margin was -7%. Lewis said 85% of the state’s hospitals are losing money."

  Officials say delayed reimbursements from insurance companies, lower reimbursement rates from government health plans, and inflation and increased costs have hurt the facilities.

  They also pointed to the February 21st  Change Healthcare cyber attack, which continues to cause issues for many providers. Adding to the strain is the increased use of Medicare and Medicaid by WA patients, which have lower reimbursement rates as opposed to traditional insurance.

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   Hospital officials say the state needs to come up with a long-term solution to ensure that independent rural healthcare facilities and hospitals can continue to survive, as large portions of the state depend on their care.