How are Florida hospitals doing financially?

69 of 209 Florida hospitals (33%) reported a loss on patient care in their latest full-year Medicare cost report, compared with 55% nationwide. The median operating margin was 7.6%, higher than the U.S. median of -1.6%. The operating margin leaves out donations, investment income and grants, so some of these hospitals still end the year in the black.

Florida hospitals reported $3.7 billion in charity care (the cost of free or discounted care for patients who qualify) in their latest full-year reports. The largest amounts came from Adventhealth Orlando ($268.9 million), Orlando Regional Healthcare ($215.0 million), Jackson Health System ($175.3 million), Baptist Medical Center ($129.9 million), Tampa General Hospital ($118.6 million).

Florida ranks 4 of 50 states by the median operating margin of its hospitals (1 = highest). A smaller share of its hospitals lost money on patient care than the U.S. as a whole (33% vs 55%).

Adventhealth Orlando in Orlando reported the most net patient revenue: $7.2 billion in its latest full-year cost report, with 2,863 beds and an operating margin of 15.2%.

It is how much a hospital keeps from patient care after paying its operating costs, as a share of its patient revenue. A margin of 5% means the hospital kept 5 cents of every dollar it earned from patients; a negative margin means patient care cost more than it brought in. It excludes donations, investment income and grants.