Tuesday, April 28, 1998 | 9:57 a.m.
CARSON CITY -- Hospital profits in Nevada fell in 1997. But Sunrise Hospital Medical Center in Las Vegas finished up another strong year, despite controversy and criticism.
The state Division of Health Care Financing and Policy issued its annual hospital report Monday showing profits declined 14 percent to $58.5 million last year compared to 1996. It was the second straight year of lower profits.
However, Sunrise posted a profit of $25.1 million, up about $100,000 from 1996. Hospital spokeswoman Ann Lynch said people in Southern Nevada realize Sunrise provides quality care and is on "the cutting edge" of new technology.
The Service Employees International Union has led the criticism of the hospital, suggesting patient care has declined and there is unrest among the health employees.
"People know that's not accurate and it's the same five or six people making the statements," Lynch said.
Sunrise's parent company, Columbia-HCA Healthcare Corp., operates 318 hospitals. It is under investigation by the Federal Health Care Financing Administration for allegedly inflating prices to collect higher reimbursements. Three employees of the company in Florida have been indicted on charges involving hospital payments.
Other major hospitals in Clark County also registered profitable years: Desert Springs, $5.8 million; Valley, $20.7 million; Lake Mead, $7.3 million; St. Rose, $3.5 million; and Boulder City, $845,419.
University Medical Center, the largest public hospital in the state, lost $9,136, down from a profit of $590,439 last year. Columbia's MountainView, which started operation in 1996, posted a loss of $58,846, down from the $1.9 million in red ink in its opening year. And Summerlin, which opened in October 1997, had a loss of $8 million.
Chris Thompson, director of the health care division, said despite the two new hospitals, occupancy percentages were generally more than 70 percent at the hospitals in Clark County.
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