Virginia hospitals and health systems provided $3.3 billion in community support for the commonwealth in 2022, according to a new report by the Virginia Hospital & Healthcare Association (VHHA) published on Wednesday. The report also revealed Virginia’s healthcare industry generated more than $64 billion in positive economic activity over the same period.
VHHA determined the dollar amount in community support by “reflecting the cost of uncompensated care, community wellness investment, taxes, and donations.”
Uncompensated care was the largest contribution to Virginia hospitals’ support of the community, with VHHA finding it constituted about $2.1 billion of the hospitals’ community support. Hospitals provided $1.2 billion as a result of medicare shortfalls, $358 million providing medicine as charity for those who could not otherwise afford healthcare, and $582 million in unpaid costs, which include “means-tested programs and subsidized health services” as well as “bad debt for services not paid in full by a patient or third-party payer.”
Additional investments by hospitals included $573 million to Virginia to fund Medicaid expansion costs, $359 million VHHA explained was “invested in health professions education as payments for degree, certification, and continuing education programs,” $201 million for community health investments, $16 million for clinical research investments, and “$105 million in cash, in-kind community payments.”
VHHA’s report found the commonwealth’s hospitals received about 3.3 million emergency room visits, 741,200 inpatient admissions, and delivered over 88,000 babies in 2022. Virginia hospitals also accepted 91.8 percent of voluntary and involuntary behavioral health inpatient hospital admissions, which often result from mental health emergencies.
Providing this care required 124,400 direct healthcare jobs, which were responsible for $12.7 billion in payroll and benefits. The report found hospitals also generated $64.3 billion in positive economic impact to Virginia.
VHHA is an alliance of 111 hospitals and 26 health delivery systems in Virginia, which “develops and advocates for sound health care policy” in the state. In December 2023, the group launched a public awareness campaign that seeks to help patients “know their rights to help them make informed medical decisions,” including a website containing information about current and possible laws that impact a patient’s experience.
In November 2023, VHHA President and CEO Sean T. Connaughton celebrated when Virginia was named the second overall among states in a report of hospital safety rankings, calling it “gratifying” to see Virginia hospitals’ “hard work recognized in the Fall 2023 Leapfrog Group Hospital Safety Guide rankings.”
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Tom Pappert is the lead reporter for The Tennessee Star, and also reports for The Georgia Star News, The Virginia Star, and The Arizona Sun Times. Follow Tom on X/Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
