Readers,

Welcome to the December issue of the National Hospital Flash Report. As the calendar year comes to a close, we observed a significant weakening in November performance due to declines in volumes and revenues, along with higher-than-expected labor and non-labor expenses.

Stay tuned for the final month’s analysis of 2019 next month, where we anticipate improvement from hospitals across the country and a positive start to 2020, with expected margin increases both month over month and year over year.

This month’s Spotlight article is the second of a two-part series examining intensifying costs associated with providing care, along with the performance improvement efforts and strategies healthcare leaders are using to address and overcome these obstacles.

We hope the insights derived from the National Hospital Flash Report prove valuable in helping develop the right strategy and performance improvement efforts for your organization. We appreciate your continued support and wish you a Happy New Year!