Report: Hospitals’ margins dip again in October, signaling continued difficulties

U.S. hospitals and health systems in October experienced their 10th consecutive month of negative operating margins, Kaufman Hall reported today. Median operating margins were down 43% from a year ago, as high labor and other costs continued to outpace revenues and labor shortages delayed discharges and admissions, according to data from over 900 hospitals.
“October represented another month of negative operating margins for hospitals, with a slight downturn from September,” the report notes. “As the year comes to a close, compounding months of poor performance could signal continued difficulties for hospitals in the near future.”
Related News Articles
Blog
When projecting the potential shortage of U.S. health care workers soon, the sky isn’t necessarily falling — at least not equally, everywhere. However, updated…
Headline
The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, Environmental Protection Agency, National Security Agency, FBI and international agencies Aug. 13…
Headline
The Trump administration Aug. 13 issued an executive order revoking a 2021 order by the previous administration that established a “whole-of-government” effort…
Headline
The AHA will host a webinar Aug. 13 from 1-2 p.m. ET that will explore strategies and proven de-escalation techniques unique to addressing workplace violence…
Headline
Nell Buhlman, chief administrative officer and head of strategy at Press Ganey, and Chris DeRienzo, M.D., AHA chief physician executive, explore the data-…
Headline
The Senate Appropriations Committee July 31 advanced the fiscal year 2026 appropriations bill for the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services,…