St. Louis-based SSM Health, a 23-hospital faith-based system, reported an operating loss of $44.8 million (-1.6% margin) for the three months ending June 30, slipping from a $39.6 million loss (-1.5% margin) during the second quarter of 2023.
Five things to know:
1. For the six months ending June 30, SSM reported a $65.1 million operating loss on revenues of $5.6 billion, compared to a $56.1 million loss on revenues of $5.1 billion in the prior-year period, according to financial documents published Aug. 26.
2. Salaries and benefits increased 7.9% year over year for the six-month period to $2.4 billion. SSM attributed this spike to increased wages and employee benefits along with increased staffing to support the growth of Navitus, a digital pharmacy benefits platform, among other initiatives.
3. Pharmacy benefit manager supply costs increased 31.4% year over year to $927.6 million for the six months ending June 30. The jump in expenses was driven by increased specialty pharmaceuticals drug costs and the growth at Navitus and Lumicera Health Services, a pass‐through model PBM company, according to SSM. The increased costs are passed on to the customer and therefore also reflected as higher PBM revenue.
4. Days of cash on hand was 138.3 as of June 30, down slightly from 139.2 on Dec. 31.
5. After accounting for nonoperating items, including investment returns, SSM reported a net income of $116.8 million for the six months ending June 30, compared to a $130.8 million net gain in the prior-year period.