Uncompensated Hospital Care Cost Fact Sheet, 2016 Update

Each year, the American Hospital Association (AHA) publishes aggregate information on the level of uncompensated care – care provided for which no payment is received – delivered by all types of U.S. hospitals. The data used to generate these numbers come from the AHA’s Annual Survey of Hospitals, which is the nation’s most comprehensive source of hospital financial data. This fact sheet provides the definition of uncompensated care and technical information on how this figure is calculated on a cost basis.

Please note, this information includes only two components within the universe of benefits that hospitals provide to their communities. While this fact sheet contains important information, it does not account for the many other services and programs that hospitals provide to meet identified community needs. It also may not fully account for other ways in which hospitals provide financial assistance to patients of limited means.