Hospitals seek price hikes to offset rising nursing costs - WSJ
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Amid surging nursing expenses, some hospital chains are looking to introduce hefty increases to treatment costs that could lead to higher premiums for employers and workers, The Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday.
HCA Healthcare Inc. (NYSE:HCA) and Universal Health Services Inc. (UHS) are said to be among hospital operators requesting higher payments from payors. Neither firm did not specify the level of the price hikes they seek, The Journal said.
However, people familiar with the talks say that some healthcare providers are seeking a 7.5% – 15% increase in their prices compared to the 4% to 6% price increases that hospitals typically seek.
Meanwhile, insurer and employer groups are pushing back as they point out that the priciest hospital operators, which are usually paid more than five times the rates paid by Medicare, can absorb the costs without price hikes.
The requests for price increases come as hospital operators are grappling with rising nursing expenses. According to Premier Inc., a healthcare data analytics firm, the average annual base pay for hospital nurses climbed to $86,674 in March, from $79,172 in June 2021.
The shares of HCA Healthcare (HCA) crashed after the company’s 1Q 2022 earnings last month as the company, which operates one of the largest hospital chains in the U.S. set its full year guidance below Street forecasts amid surging labor costs.
Hospital prices are typically set under long-term contracts with insurers and employers. With some discussions on new contracts unlikely to start until 2024, the delay will soften next year's health expenditure for some employers. However, some hospitals are said to be seeking contract renewals ahead of the schedule to add price hikes.
Hospitals in talks with health insurer Anthem (ANTM) are requesting a few to double-digit percentage point price increases over the historic rates, Bryony Winn, president of the company’s contracting operations said.
Commenting on the cost inflation of healthcare providers, Sarah London, Chief Executive of rival managed care provider, Centene (CNC) said at the recent earnings call: “The fact that our rates are contracted creates a buffer on that but obviously aware of the potential future impact.”
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Ive never missed a day of work in my life nor even been in a hospital bed and havent had a need to even have a primary doctor visit in over 4 years, why I jog 7 days a week for over 50 years , stay healthy no vices and started eating healthy 5 years ago, the high costs of health care are in part more people getting sick ie poor health but mostly because of the coporate practice of medicine to enrich all healthcare providers and its associated involved entities the middlemen created to suck money out to fhe system for their benefits the healthcare system is still broken because like the drug industry too many lobbyist for every profession every provider is there to protect their enrichment








The last couple of times i visited a hospital around 10-12 yers ago, in one case i got a bill for $ 200 from a doctor whom my PA was talking to , hopefully about my condition , for exactly 3 minutes.
Another time, I got $1200 bill for waiting in line for 2 hours and talking to a doctor for 5 min. to all fairness I was laying down during those hours since I couldn't keep vertical because of a terrible vertigo.
Can't even imagine what cost of the hospitalization is now...
I respect doctors and nurses and their work but middle class can't afford their services any longer even with a pretty decent private insurance.
I know never will happen, the workers will be paid less, their benefit costs will rise as well as the patients costs.Bruce Hornsby told us “that’s just the way it is, something’s will never change.”

