For-profit hospitals beat Q2 expectations on rising admissions, expense improvements

Rebounding volume, including increased demand for elective surgeries, boosted toplines for HCA, Tenet, CHS and UHS in the second quarter.

By Susanna Vogel • Aug. 10, 2023

MA bonuses reach record high, with UnitedHealthcare, Humana biggest winners

Star ratings bonuses reached $12.8 billion, according to the KFF, as the Medicare program faces a growing spending crisis.

By Rebecca Pifer • Aug. 10, 2023

Smaller insurers tout progress toward profitability in Q2

Clover notched its first quarterly adjusted EBITDA profit as a public company, while Oscar reached total company profitability for the second quarter in a row. Meanwhile, Bright posted its first quarter ever with positive adjusted EBITDA.

By Rebecca Pifer • Aug. 9, 2023

5 takeaways from health insurers’ second-quarter earnings

UnitedHealth, CVS, Elevance and peers sidestepped the worst of medical cost growth in the quarter, but many payers face uncertainty from Medicare Advantage star ratings, GLP-1s and other pressures.

By Rebecca Pifer • Aug. 8, 2023

Babylon’s take-private deal with MindMaze collapses

The digital health firm said it was exiting its core operations in the U.S. and searching for a buyer for its U.K. business. 

By Emily Olsen • Aug. 7, 2023

Kaiser Permanente in the black for second quarter, after loss in 2022

CFO Kathy Lancaster said Kaiser is ready to face the second half of the year after posting a $2.1 billion profit in the second quarter.

By Susanna Vogel • Aug. 7, 2023

Top paying specialties less likely to recruit women and underrepresented groups, study finds

The results suggest that lucrative specialties were less successful at recruiting underrepresented groups in medicine, according to a new JAMA study.

By Susanna Vogel • Aug. 4, 2023

Cigna checks medical cost growth as Evernorth earnings boosted by GLP-1s

Cigna’s medical costs in the quarter were “well-controlled,” one analyst said, but faced pressure from higher estimated risk-adjustment payments in the ACA individual exchanges.

By Rebecca Pifer • Aug. 3, 2023

CHS announces new strategic initiatives to get back in black

After CHS posted a net income loss of $38 million on Wednesday, leadership told investors they have a plan to recover.

By Susanna Vogel • Aug. 3, 2023

Amwell lowers 2023 revenue outlook, racks up impairment charge in Q2

The telehealth company’s results are being impacted by churn on Amwell’s legacy platform as it migrates customers to its Converge software, CFO Robert Shepardson said.

By Emily Olsen • Aug. 3, 2023

CVS announces restructuring plan after profit falls 37%

CVS also lowered its 2024 earnings outlook, citing cost pressures, and said investors should no longer rely on its 2025 target.

By Rebecca Pifer • Aug. 2, 2023

Humana reports lower-than-feared medical costs, raises MA membership growth outlook

Humana’s stock rose following the earnings, which — along with comments from other payers — suggest the uptick in outpatient care flagged earlier in the quarter is moderating.

By Rebecca Pifer • Aug. 2, 2023

CMS finalizes 3.1% inpatient payment bump for hospitals

Hospitals decried the rate adjustment, which is higher than the 2.8% proposed earlier this year, as out of touch with their financial reality.

By Rebecca Pifer • Aug. 2, 2023

Tenet posts $123M profit on strong surgical demand, lower contract labor costs

Tenet is the third for-profit hospital to raise its revenue forecast for the year following its second quarter performance.

By Susanna Vogel • Aug. 1, 2023

Operating margins improve, but hospitals still face high expenses: Kaufman Hall

Most hospitals underperformed in June, which the consultancy attributes to a growing gap between affluent and poor hospitals.

By Emily Olsen • Aug. 1, 2023

CVS to lay off 5K employees amid cost pressures

The job cuts come as CVS faces hefty integration costs from recent M&A, including its $10.6 billion buy of Oak Street and $8 billion acquisition of Signify.

By Rebecca Pifer • Aug. 1, 2023

Digital health funding, deals reach lowest levels in years

Digital health startups across the globe raised $3.4 billion across 348 deals in the second quarter, with mega-rounds making up more than a quarter of all funding.

By Emily Olsen • July 31, 2023

Sanford-Fairview merger dead, following significant stakeholder pressures

Sanford and Fairview explored all options to keep the merger viable, but ultimately were forced to end the process due to a lack of support in Minnesota, Sanford CEO Bill Gassen said.

By Susanna Vogel • July 28, 2023

Centene’s 2024 outlook hampered by Medicaid redeterminations

The payer lost 262,700 Medicaid members in the second quarter, dropping its total Medicaid lives to just over 16 million.

By Rebecca Pifer • July 28, 2023

Nevada to shut down Friday Health Plans

State regulators will liquidate the failing insurtech, leaving about 3,000 enrollees to look for new coverage.

By Emily Olsen • July 27, 2023

HCA raises full-year outlook on strengthening admissions

The hospital chain's second quarter earnings beat Wall Street’s expectations on Thursday, as revenue rose off of increased utilization of inpatient and outpatient services.

By Susanna Vogel • July 27, 2023

Molina reports Medicaid redeterminations proceeding as expected

Despite concerns about high early levels of disenrollments, the payer lost 93,000 Medicaid members during the second quarter — well within forecasts, CEO Joe Zubretsky said.

By Rebecca Pifer • July 27, 2023

UHS beat Wall Street estimates for Q2 earnings on ‘high demand’ at acute care hospitals

The hospital operator raised lower-bound revenue expectations for 2023 after reporting a year-over-year increase in profit and revenue.

By Susanna Vogel • July 26, 2023

This year will not bring ‘full rebound’ for nonprofit hospitals

Many nonprofit hospitals suffered their worst operational year on record in 2022. This year is unlikely to bring a complete end to financial hardships, according to Fitch Ratings.

By Susanna Vogel • July 25, 2023

PE ownership worsens quality, raises costs, according to BMJ review

The analysis comes as private equity investments in healthcare soar and regulators look to crack down on roll-up acquisitions.

By Sydney Halleman • July 24, 2023