Survey shows Washington state hospitals had a net loss of $1.75 billion in the first half of 2022
YAKIMA, Wash. — The Washington State Hospital Association reports hospitals across the state had a net loss of $1.75 billion in the first half of the year and a survey projects if losses continue at the same rate, dozens of hospitals could be filing for bankruptcy by the end of 2023.
“We’re already seeing service cuts, limits on hospital admissions,” WSHA chief financial officer Eric Lewis said. “It’s possible without action, we could see hospital closures.”
When a hospital closes, it limits patients’ access to healthcare by taking away services that the community needs and forces them to find a hospital that’s likely further away and might be overwhelmed by the number of new patients they’re taking in.
That’s a struggle Yakima Valley Memorial Hospital had when the city’s only other hospital, Astria Regional Medical Center, closed in early 2020, right before the first COVID-19 cases were reported locally.
“When you lose access to one ER, then obviously, it’s a burden on the other,” said Dr. Marty Brueggemann with YVMH. “We were already seeing the lion’s share of the patients, but that’s an added burden as well.”
Yakima Valley Memorial Hospital now has the busiest emergency department in Washington state, seeing anywhere from 250 to 300 patients a day. Brueggemann said about 40% are not emergency medical issues.
“If you have a non-urgent problem, such as a splinter or a sprain or minor burn, going to see one of the urgent care clinics would certainly help reduce some of the volumes and the pressure on the ER,” Brueggemann said.
Brueggemann said the hospital is also struggling financially, mainly due to inflation and a low reimbursement rate for Medicaid patients that hasn’t increased in more than 20 years. He said those reimbursements make up 70% of the hospital’s revenue.
“All of our supplies cost more, our labor force costs more and yet we’re expected to operate with the same operating income,” Brueggemann said. “We need the government agencies to look at their contracts and see if they still make sense.”
Brueggemann said the hospital has been providing care to people in the Yakima area for 72 years and they plan to be here for another 50 years.
“We’re gonna be here for community, but we could sure use your help, you know, decompressing our ER and helping raise awareness for some of the struggles that you have in a community like Yakima,” Brueggemann said.
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