And I do mean slight, overall. Hospital PCE improved 0.82% YoY; less so on a MoM basis. The thing to remember is that the taxable hospitals are just a small fraction of total U.S. hospital discharges but they are outperforming their tax-exempt peers in terms of throughput and cost control. In other words, most of the improvement can probably be attributed to what HCA, THC and a few other small ones are doing to retain and efficiently use labor.
Earning commentary indicated that the trend began in September and continued throughout the month, suggesting more improvement in October, especially true if all the non-profits get their act together.
Emily Evans
Managing Director – Health Policy
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