Four major for-profit hospital operators have posted patient volume results for the first quarter of 2021:
1. Franklin, Tenn.-based Community Health Systems reported that its consolidated operating results for the first quarter of 2021 reflect a 14 percent decrease in admissions and a 15.8 percent decrease in adjusted admissions, compared with the same period last year. On a same-facility basis, admissions dipped 4.9 percent in the first quarter of 2021, and adjusted admissions decreased 7.2 percent, compared to the same period in 2020.
2. Nashville, Tenn.-based HCA Healthcare said same-facility admissions declined 4.2 percent, and same-facility equivalent admissions declined 6.5 percent in the first quarter of 2021, compared to the same period a year prior. Same-facility emergency room visits declined 18.4 percent year over year, while same-facility inpatient surgeries declined 5.4 percent, and same-facility outpatient surgeries climbed 2.3 percent year over year.
3. Dallas-based Tenet Healthcare said same-hospital admissions decreased 10.9 percent in the first quarter of 2021 compared to the first quarter of 2020. Same-hospital adjusted admissions — representing actual patient admissions adjusted to include outpatient services at its hospitals — decreased 13.7 percent year over year. When compared to the same period last year, Tenet noted that the headwinds from the COVID-19 pandemic weren't felt primarily until the latter half of March 2020. Its first-quarter results in 2021 were also affected by a winter storm in February and ongoing COVID-19 challenges.
4. King of Prussia, Pa.-based Universal Health Services said adjusted admissions (adjusted for outpatient activity) at its acute care hospitals decreased 12.1 percent in the first quarter of 2021, compared to the same period a year prior. Adjusted patient days decreased 0.7 percent year over year at its acute care hospitals. UHS said adjusted admissions at its behavioral healthcare facilities on a same-facility basis decreased 4.9 percent, and adjusted patient days decreased 3.8 percent in the first quarter of 2021, compared to the first quarter of last year.