Inflation Squeezing Rural Hospital Margins – What’s next?

November 4, 2022

Inflation Squeezing Rural Hospital Margins – What’s next?

Hospitals in the United States are on track for their worst financial year in decades. According to a recent report, median hospital operating margins were cumulatively negative through the first eight months of 2022. Dramatic margin fluctuations have characterized 2022, and U.S. hospitals are still operating substantially below pre-pandemic levels. Most metrics improved month-over-month in August as revenues and expenses climbed compared to July. However, most organizations are in poor shape with a negative operating margin. The bipartisan Save America’s Rural Hospitals Act was recently introduced to the 117th Congress to raise the rural health safety net and keep rural hospitals open. You can advocate for its passage here today