AHA blog: Charity care only part of hospital’s community benefit

A study published this month in Health Affairs on the charity care provided by tax-exempt hospitals fails to recognize that charity care is only one part of a hospital’s total community benefit, writes AHA General Counsel Melinda Hatton.

“In fact, an Ernst and Young report from 2017 demonstrates that for every dollar invested in non-profit hospitals and health systems through the federal tax exemption, $11 in benefits is delivered back to communities,” Hatton notes.