Hospitals are the highest earners in the healthcare industry, accounting for about one-third of all spending on the industry. While physicians have been steadily making more money over the years, surgeons are the top earners. Neurosurgeons, orthopedic surgeons, plastic surgeons, and other specialists make six figures or more, with the lowest-paid physicians making nearly six times that much. However, there are exceptions.
Seven of the top 10 profit-making hospitals in the United States are nonprofits. These institutions rake in more than $150 million in profits in 2013. The top hospital in that list is the Gunderson Lutheran Medical Center, a nonprofit hospital in La Crosse, Wis. This institution reportedly made $302.5 million from patient care and service in 2013 alone. Other highly profitable hospitals include the Stanford University Hospital with a profit margin of $225 billion, the University of Pennsylvania Hospital with an operating margin of $184.5 million, and the Cleveland Clinic with two main hospitals.
Interestingly, nine out of the top ten profit-making hospitals are nonprofits. Only two of the top 10 hospitals were for-profit in 2013, while three are nonprofit. The top hospital on Forbes’ list is Gunderson Lutheran Medical Center in La Crosse, Wis., which made $302.5 million in profits from patient care and services. Other profitable hospitals include Stanford University Hospital and the University of Pennsylvania Hospital.
In addition to hospitals in the top ten, seven of the most profit-making hospitals in the United States are nonprofits. They each netted more than $150 million in profit in 2013. The most profitable hospital on the list is the Gunderson Lutheran Medical Center, located in La Crosse, Wis., which earned $302.5 million in profit in 2013 despite being a nonprofit. Stanford University Hospital and the University of Pennsylvania Hospital are also profitable, earning $225 million and $184.5 billion.
The top ten list is largely dominated by for-profit hospitals. Several of the top ten hospitals are part of a health-care chain. HCA, for example, has 10 hospitals on the list. The company’s Dallas-based Medical City Hospital makes more than two cents for every dollar of patient revenue. Meanwhile, General Electric, which had an operating profit margin of 15%, had an operating profit margin of only three cents on every dollar of revenue.
The top ten hospitals in the United States are mostly nonprofit. Seven of them made profits of more than $150 million in 2013. The top five hospitals are Harvard Medical Center, Stanford Hospital, and the University of Pennsylvania Medical Center. Some of these companies have huge profit margins, which are used to offset high expenses. But other types of medical companies are in the business of making money by undercharging their employees. And some of them may be using local monopolies to overcharge patients.