Colorado’s hospital systems aren’t expecting this financial year to be much better after a challenging 2022, though leaders said they have plans to try to bring expenses under control.

Hospitals in the state had a combined profit margin on patient care of 4.7% in 2022, which was about half their margin in 2021, according to the Colorado Hospital Association. Counting investment losses, their total profit margin dropped to 1.5%, compared to about 14% in each of the previous three years.

Julie Lonborg, vice president of communications and media relations at the Colorado Hospital Association, described the 2022 financial results as a blow to the industry. Hospitals need about a 4% margin to keep up with maintenance on their buildings and equipment, and with other costs of continuing to provide care, she said.

“We have a whole lot of people below that,” she said.

The Denver Post spoke to leaders from the state’s major hospital systems about how they plan to address their financial challenges in 2023.

— Full story via Meg Wingerter, The Denver Post

Colorado hospital leaders see continuing financial challenges in 2023: “We’re not out of the woods”
Dr. Amie Scott, left, Casey Bowden, center and Laura Mattox, right, both nurse practitioners, put on their personal protective equipment before seeing a patient in the Emergency Department at UCHealth University of Colorado Hospital in Aurora on March 13, 2023. (Photo by Helen H. Richardson/The Denver Post)

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Source:: The Denver Post