Hospital profits up in state

Friday, April 5, 1996 | 11:59 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- Profits soared in Nevada's hospital industry in 1995 but patients paid slightly lower bills than in 1994.

And Sunrise Hospital and Medical Center in Las Vegas regained the title as Nevada's biggest profit maker.

The state Health Care Financial Analysis Unit reported Wednesday that profits in Nevada hospitals in calendar year 1995 jumped to $82.8 million, up from $39.8 million the year before.

The profit per admission rose from $214 in 1994 to $413 in 1995.

But Nevada patients paid an average of $6,578 for their time spent in the hospital, or $9 less than the previous year.

Christopher Thompson, head of the unit, said hospitals are holding down their expenses, which in part led to the higher profits.

Another reason for the overall state profit picture is that University Medical Center in Las Vegas lost only $7.5 million last year, compared with $19.8 million the year before.

In addition, he said, there was increased profits at the two Reno hospitals -- St. Mary's Regional Medical Center and Washoe Medical Center.

"Because they're the only two major hospitals (in Northern Nevada), they don't have the cutthroat competition balance that exists in the south," Thompson said.

While hospitals in Clark County offer extensive discounts, Thompson said those in the Reno area don't have to cut prices as much to get business.

Hospitals statewide had their beds filled for longer periods in '95. The occupancy rate rose from 56.8 percent in 1994 to 60.8 percent in 1995.

Thompson said the four largest hospitals in Clark County had occupancy percentages of more than 70 percent, the first time this has occurred in more than 15 years.

Sunrise MountainView Hospital and Medical Center opened earlier this year in northwest Las Vegas and that should reduce the occupancy percentage in Southern Nevada, at least temporarily.

Profits at the existing Sunrise jumped to $21.2 million last year, up from $17.1 million in 1994.

Lake Mead Hospital Medical Center in North Las Vegas registered the biggest profit per day per patient in Southern Nevada at $205, followed by Valley Hospital Medical Center at $154, Desert Springs Hospital at $150 and Sunrise at $100. University Medical Center, the county hospital, lost $44 per day per patient.

In contrast to the metropolitan areas, six of the 10 hospitals in rural Nevada lost money. The biggest losers were Humboldt General Hospital in Winnemuca at $1.9 million and Nye Regional Medical Center in Tonopah at $1.1 million.

Thompson said billed charges per admission at Nevada hospitals rose 5.2 percent to $15,979 in 1995. But that is less meaningful because only 10.3 percent of all patients in major hospitals pay the full billed charges.

Payments for most patients are discounted from the bill charges because of contracts with insurance companies or Medicare or Medicaid.

Hospitals in Nevada are among the most profitable in the nation. But Thompson said the bills actually paid by patients have remained fairly steady in recent years, giving the state one of the best records in the country.

In addition, the five major hospitals in Nevada -- the three privates in Las Vegas and the two in Reno -- are limited to increasing rates each year to the medical price index.

The state is expected to announce later this month that those five will be able to raise rates about 4.1 percent next fiscal year.