Colorado Health Market Review 2019: Net Income for Denver Area Hospitals in 2018 Topped $2 Billion for the First Time – ResearchAndMarkets.com

DUBLIN--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- The "Colorado Health Market Review 2019" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

Denver Net income for Denver-area hospitals in 2018 topped $2 billion for the first time. With the significant exception of the Kaiser Colorado HMO, health insurers were strongly profitable and increased their enrollment. Consolidation continues both for health systems and health insurers.

These and other findings are reported in Colorado Health Market Review 2019. This is the 20th edition of the report, first published in 1994.

The new Colorado report finds:

Denver-area hospitals reported record profits in 2018.

Based on an analysis of data from their Medicare cost reports, 28 Denver-area hospitals reported combined pre-tax net income in 2018 of $2.104 billion, or 18.4% of total patient revenues of $11.424 billion. They had operating income of $959.7 million as well as other revenues, such as government grants, philanthropy and investments, of $1.048 billion. That is up from their 2017 net income of $1.728 billion, or 16.1% of revenues. They increased their net patient revenues by 9.2% in a year when patient care expenses grew by only 4.1%.

The HealthONE-HCA hospitals reported pre-tax net income of $1.19 billion or 45.5% of revenues, and the Centura Health hospitals had net income in 2018 of $144.2 million. The University of Colorado Health system is now the largest in the state, and its flagship hospital in Aurora had a net income of $436.1 million, or 23.1% of net patient revenues. The SCL Health hospitals in the region had margins of 10.3%.

Hospital systems outside the Denver were also strongly profitable.

In 2018, 28 hospitals posted a combined net income of $822.8 million, including $520.4 million from operations and $248.8 million from other revenues. In 2017, these hospitals had combined net income of $686.9 million. The University of Colorado hospitals, with locations including Colorado Springs and Fort Collins, had a net income of $350.4 million, or 16.4% of revenues. The Centura hospitals had average margins of 9.0%, while the Banner Health hospitals had average margins of 11.6%.

Even with a strong economy, significant population growth and capital investments, inpatient hospital utilization have increased very slowly.

Colorado hospital systems have made significant capital investments in the past 15 years, including replacement hospitals, new mid-sized and micro hospitals, freestanding emergency rooms and clinics. Even as capacity has increased, inpatient utilization has increased by only about 1% a year. New hospitals and other facilities have gone up in the Denver and its suburbs and also in Fort Collins, Colorado Springs and Grand Junction. The University of Colorado Health system completed or acquired several new hospitals in the past three years on a path to establishing a regional health system that covers much of Colorado plus parts of Nebraska and Wyoming.

Large losses for Kaiser darkened an otherwise bright profit picture for health plans.

Colorado HMOs reported net income of $120.2 million in 2018, or 1.3% of underwriting revenues, up to $78.1 million in 2016. Much of that was from the Medicare Advantage plans of PacifiCare, a UnitedHealth Group company, in Colorado, Arizona and Nevada, and Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield's plans in Colorado and Nevada. However, Kaiser's Colorado HMO, the largest health insurer in the state, lost $147.9 million in 2018 after losing $49.6 million in 2017. Kaiser's results have improved: it reported unaudited net income of $138.9 million in the first six months of 2019.

Enrollment in HMOs has grown, as Colorado expanded Medicaid and more individuals are buying health insurance.

Enrollment in HMOs has surpassed its previous peak of 1.636 million sets in 2000 and grew by 9% in 2018. About 40% are in individual and employer groups plans, while enrollment in Medicaid HMOs, though not full-risk arrangements, has grown sharply and is now 34.5% of the total. Enrollment in Medicare Advantage plans has grown steadily, and almost 40% of Medicare beneficiaries are in a health plan.

Key Topics Covered:

• Introduction
• Market Structure
• Health Plan Companies
• Colorado Provider Systems
• Trend Review
• Health Plan Enrollment
• Medicare and Medicaid Plans
• Revenues and Net Income
• Finances by Lines of Business
• Payments and Administrative Expenses
• Health Plan Capital
• Hospitals and Hospital Systems
• Denver Area Hospitals
• Revenues and Net Income
• Occupancy and Payer Mix
• Medicare Bonuses and Penalty Programs
• Other Colorado Hospitals
• Revenues and Net Income
• Occupancy and Payer Mix
• Medicare Bonuses and Penalty Programs
• A Look Ahead

Companies Mentioned

• Banner Health
• Centura Health
• HealthONE
• Kaiser Colorado
• PacifiCare (A UnitedHealth Group company)
• SCL Health
• The University of Colorado

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/edz099

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Source: Research and Markets