How are Nevada hospitals doing financially?

17 of 42 Nevada hospitals (40%) reported a loss on patient care in their latest full-year Medicare cost report, compared with 55% nationwide. The median operating margin was 4.0%, 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.

Nevada hospitals reported $279.1 million 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 University Medical Center ($60.1 million), Sunrise Hospital and Medical Center ($55.3 million), Renown Regional Medical Center ($29.3 million), Mountainview Hospital ($23.0 million), Saint Rose Dominican Hospital - Siena Campus ($18.6 million).

Nevada ranks 8 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 (40% vs 55%).

Renown Regional Medical Center in Reno reported the most net patient revenue: $1.3 billion in its latest full-year cost report, with 581 beds and an operating margin of 7.6%.

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.