Johnson City, Tenn.-based Ballad Health reported an operating loss of $37.3 million for the three months ended March 31, compared to an operating income of $16 million in the same period last year, according to its financial results.
The 22-hospital system had a net loss of $114.9 million in the three months ended March 31, compared to a net income of $28.3 million the previous year.
Its total revenue reached $564.8 million in the third quarter of fiscal year 2022, a slight increase from the same period last year at $558.9 million. The system's net patient service revenue was $544.9 million, a 7.4 percent increase year over year from $507.1 million.
Ballad's total expenses rose 10.9 percent year over year, to $602.1 million for the three months ended March 31, compared to $542.9 million in the same period last year. This can be largely attributed to salaries and wages, which increased by 14.7 percent to $183 million in the third quarter this fiscal year from $159.5 million last year.
Ballad attributed the operating loss in the third quarter of fiscal year 2022 to pressures from COVID-19 and the omicron variant.
"COVID-19 hospitalizations, driven by the omicron variant, peaked at record levels in the third quarter with those inpatients requiring longer hospital stays," the system said in the report. "The omicron surge contributed to declines in other volume, while expenses continued to escalate due to widespread national labor shortages and global supply chain issues coupled with inflation on most other non-labor expenses."