05/02/2024 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 05/02/2024 08:31
WASHINGTON (May 2, 2024) - The American Hospital Association (AHA) today released a new report showing that hospitals and health systems continue to experience significant financial pressures that challenge their ability to provide 24/7 care for the patients and communities they serve.
In 2023, data show that hospitals and health systems continued to face substantial challenges due to higher costs for labor, drugs, and supplies. At the same time, reimbursements from Medicare and Medicaid did not keep pace with these mounting costs, and hospitals and health systems increasingly encountered challenges navigating onerous commercial insurer practices such as denying and delaying access to and payment for patient care. These headwinds persist in 2024 and have been further exacerbated by the recent unprecedented Change Healthcare cyberattack, forcing many hospitals to dip into their diminishing cash reserves to maintain operations.
Key findings from the report include:
"As this report clearly highlights, increased expenses, workforce challenges, and growing administrative burden are unsustainable and creating headwinds and obstacles that threaten access to care for millions of Americans," said AHA President and CEO Rick Pollack. "The AHA urges Congress and the Administration to take action to strengthen hospitals and health systems and bolster access to care for all patients and communities."
The full report, along with a one-page executive summary, can be found HERE. More information on the AHA's advocacy agenda to support hospitals and health systems can be found HERE.
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About the American Hospital Association (AHA)
The American Hospital Association (AHA) is a not-for-profit association of health care provider organizations and individuals that are committed to the health improvement of their communities. The AHA advocates on behalf of our nearly 5,000 member hospitals, health systems and other health care organizations, our clinician partners - including more than 270,000 affiliated physicians, 2 million nurses and other caregivers - and the 43,000 health care leaders who belong to our professional membership groups. Founded in 1898, the AHA provides insight and education for health care leaders and is a source of information on health care issues and trends. For more information, visit the AHA website at www.aha.org.