Tuesday, November 19, 2013

New Hampshire Non-Profit Hospital Earnings Up 496% Under Obamacare and Headed Higher

From a review of the Electronic Municipal Market Access (EMMA), I found 6 Non-Profit Hospital Organizations headquartered in the State of New Hampshire with Total Operating Revenues of more than $250 mil each, lowered in order to get more Hospitals included.  Below here are the Bottom Line Profits in the most recent two audited fiscal years reported for each of these New Hampshire Non-Profit Hospital Organizations:


Most




Most Recent Prior



Recent Year Year



Annual Bottom Bottom

Fiscal Line Line Increase Increase

City Year Net Net (Decrease) (Decrease)

HQs End Income Income Amount %



mils $s mils $s mils $s
New Hampshire Non-Profit Hospital Organizations










Dartmouth Hitchcock Oblig Group Lebanon Jun 2013            83                  (9)            92 1022%
Southern New Hampshire Health Pelham Sep 2012            23                   3            20 667%
CMC Healthcare Manchester Jun 2013            20                 11              9 82%
Concord Hospital Concord Sep 2013            11                 19             (8) -42%
Wentworth Douglass Health Dover Dec 2012            11                   5              6 120%
Elliott Health Manchester Jun 2013              7                  (3)            10 333%







Total all 6

         155                 26          129 496%

Yeah, these 6 New Hampshire Non-Profit Hospital Organizations generated Total Bottom Line Profits of $155 mil in the most recent fiscal year, which was a $129 mil increase, or an exceptionally robust 496% increase, over the previous fiscal year.

But there's much more to this earnings story.

When the Insurance Exchanges kick in starting in 2014, these New Hampshire Non-Profit Hospital Organizations should see their profits increase by much more.

Under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), Hospital Organizations' both future Hospital Operating Income and future Bottom Line Income will be bolstered robustly due to many of the Uninsured getting insurance and also due to the many of the Underinsured getting much better insurance.  And if New Hampshire elects to Expand Medicaid, the profits of all New Hampshire Hospitals will be substantially increased by reducing the huge earnings charges related to both Bad Debts and Charity Care.

So what about the amounts of these two items.....Bad Debts and Uncompensated Charity Care?  Well, they are very large, especially when compared to the related Hospital Operating Income.

From a review of the Electronic Municipal Market Access (EMMA), below here are the most recent audited year's Provision for Bad Debts and Uncompensated Charity Care Costs for these 6 New Hampshire Non-Profit Hospital Organizations:





One Year One



One Year Estimated Year One


Most Provision Cost of Total Year


Recent For Uncompensated Earnings Hospital


Annual Bad Charity Charge Operating


FYE Debts Care of Both Income



mils $s mils $s mils $s mils $s
New Hampshire Non-Profit Hospital Organizations










Dartmouth Hitchcock Oblig Group
Sep 2011            39                 26            65           (13)
Elliott Health
Jun 2013            50                   9            59              3
Concord Hospital
Sep 2012            28                 15            43            14
Wentworth-Douglas Health
Dec 2012            26                   9            35            10
CMC Healthcare
Jun 2013            26                   9            35            10
Southern New Hampshire Health
Sep 2012            19                   7            26              6







Total all 6

         188                 75          263            30







Provision for Bad Debts



             188
Uncompensated Charity Care Costs



               75





   
Operating Income Excluding Bad Debts and Uncompensated Charity Care Costs
         293


So, these 6 New Hampshire Hospital Organizations had Audited Total Hospital Operating Income of $30 mil in the most recent fiscal year.  Driving down this $30 mil Total Hospital Operating Income were Total Provisions for Bad Debts of $188 mil and Total Costs of Uncompensated Charity Care of another $75 mil.  Thus, exclusive of these two earnings charges, Total Hospital Operating Income would have been $293 mil, which is $263 mil higher than the reported $30 mil.
 
Granted these two earnings charges will not be totally eliminated with the ACA, but a substantial amount of these two earnings charges will be eliminated, and especially if New Hampshire elects to Expand Medicaid, which is the predominant driver of these two earnings charges being very substantially reduced.

And the above two earnings charges are just for one year.

With these solid, ongoing New Hampshire Non-Profit Hospital earnings under Obamacare, the ultimate result should be a reduction in hospital patient charges, a bending back of the US Long-term Total Health Care Cost Curve and a reduction in the US Debt.

That's quite a financial Trifecta!

And it also only makes sense that some of these huge past and future bottom line profits of these US Hospital Organizations, both Non-Profit and For-Profit ones, should be used to wisely fund a substantial portion of the elimination of the US Government Sequester Cost Cuts over the next say 3 to 4 years which are now being negotiated by 29 US Congressional members of the Bilateral and Bicameral Committee Conference on Budget Negotiations.  Both clear-thinking Republicans and clear-thinking Democrats should be on board with this wise funding vehicle.