Citing pandemic-related declines, Johnson City, Tenn.-based Ballad Health reported a net operating loss of $11.2 million in the third quarter of fiscal year 2020, according to its recently released financial report.
In the quarter ended March 31, Ballad said its net patient revenue dropped 6 percent year-over-year to $483.7 million. Ballad said about 80 percent of the decline for the quarter is attributed to the COVID-19 pandemic. The health system saw its discharges decline by 7 percent; inpatient surgeries dip by 10.7 percent; and outpatient surgeries decrease by 5.2 percent.
Its nonoperating income reached $20.2 million in the third quarter, a $31.7 million increase year over year.
Ballad Health recorded $521.3 million in expenses in the third quarter of fiscal year 2020, a $400,000 decline from the same period one year prior.
To help offset the losses, Ballad Health has implemented a recovery plan that includes furloughing staff members, suspending retirement contributions and cutting salaries of executive leaders.
Even with the cost-reduction strategies, Ballad Health said it expects to incur significant losses in the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2020.