Until the 20th century, most Americans did not go to hospitals for diagnosis or treatment of illnesses. Patients were treated in their own homes, with the exception of those with no relatives or who were already near death. It wasn’t until the late 1890s, when medical technology advanced and gave physicians improved ability to diagnose patients and control infectious disease, that hospitals became attractive to the general public. Even then, it was only wealthier families that turned to hospitals for care.
Now, in 2019, hospitals are the primary care centers for the majority of Americans. Hospitals are home to care providers of various specialties as well as advanced diagnostic technology, and account for approximately one-third of all medical spending in the U.S.—about $1.1 trillion.
Despite the massive amount Americans are spending at hospitals, admissions have dropped over 10 percent in the past 35 years. Rather than not having any options, patients and families have a plethora of care centers to choose between: from retail clinics to outpatient surgery centers, home health agencies to assisted living facilities. Additionally, although hospitals have sufficient resources to treat most patients, Americans are increasingly wary of the environment. Rather than being centers of recovery, many patients associate hospitals with stress and mortality. As technology improves and alternative care centers become increasingly efficient, hospitals will likely downsize or convert to focus on specific inpatient and emergency department services.
Many hospitals are bringing in billions of dollars in net patient revenue. All of the top ten hospitals reported a 2017 net patient revenue of over $3 billion (up from 7 of 10 in 2016), and all of the top 25 brought in more than $2 billion (up from 22 of 25 in 2016). Combined, the top 50 hospitals earned more than $123 billion in net patient revenue.
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Hospital Name | Net Patient Revenue | Total Revenues | Staffed Beds | Explore This Dataset | |
1. | New York-Presbyterian Hospital at Weill Cornell Medical Center (NY) | $5,340,902,266 | $5,616,461,647 | 862 | Explore This Profile |
2. | Cleveland Clinic Main Campus (OH) | $4,858,709,504 | $6,118,911,406 | 1,266 | Explore This Profile |
3. | Stanford Hospital (CA) | $4,132,132,686 | $4,378,160,909 | 447 | Explore This Profile |
4. | NYU Langone Tisch Hospital (NY) | $4,101,296,000 | $4,448,505,796 | 725 | Explore This Profile |
5. | UCSF Helen Diller Medical Center at Parnassus Heights (CA) | $3,620,962,130 | $3,807,905,052 | 782 | Explore This Profile |
6. | University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center (TX) | $3,480,505,919 | $3,961,976,800 | 674 | Explore This Profile |
7. | Vanderbilt University Medical Center (TN) | $3,442,776,569 | $4,135,044,535 | 626 | Explore This Profile |
8. | AdventHealth Orlando (FL) | $3,432,794,596 | $3,706,284,602 | 2,626 | Explore This Profile |
9. | University of Michigan - University Hospital (MI) | $3,296,778,854 | $3,537,668,362 | 931 | Explore This Profile |
10. | Cedars-Sinai Medical Center (CA) | $3,140,742,831 | $3,591,834,597 | 880 | Explore This Profile |
11. | Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (NY) | $2,922,980,827 | $3,667,269,877 | 473 | Explore This Profile |
12. | Massachusetts General Hospital (MA) | $2,903,757,623 | $4,072,847,623 | 987 | Explore This Profile |
13. | Yale New Haven Hospital (CT) | $2,749,659,018 | $3,025,645,807 | 581 | Explore This Profile |
14. | Montefiore Hospital - Moses Campus (NY) | $2,728,344,000 | $3,626,537,000 | 1,449 | Explore This Profile |
15. | IU Health Methodist Hospital (IN) | $2,634,217,338 | $4,333,584,135 | 1,230 | Explore This Profile |
16. | Baystate Medical Center (MA) | $2,545,278,066 | $2,648,852,951 | 696 | Explore This Profile |
17. | Mount Sinai Medical Center (NY) | $2,467,873,137 | $2,610,295,555 | 1,009 | Explore This Profile |
18. | Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania (PA) | $2,448,160,000 | $2,783,055,001 | 722 | Explore This Profile |
19. | Lehigh Valley Hospital - Cedar Crest (PA) | $2,368,735,849 | $2,523,947,055 | 1,007 | Explore This Profile |
20. | Duke University Hospital (NC) | $2,339,265,283 | $2,405,497,870 | 954 | Explore This Profile |
21. | Orlando Regional Medical Center (FL) | $2,319,178,866 | $2,549,700,083 | 808 | Explore This Profile |
22. | Mayo Clinic Hospital - Saint Marys Campus (MN) | $2,313,337,795 | $2,330,430,279 | 1,186 | Explore This Profile |
23. | Carolinas Medical Center (NC) | $2,283,129,668 | $2,895,839,106 | 1,084 | Explore This Profile |
24. | Brigham and Womens Hospital (MA) | $2,257,366,198 | $3,095,466,198 | 804 | Explore This Profile |
25. | Long Island Jewish Medical Center (NY) | $2,222,706,644 | $2,868,055,575 | 524 | Explore This Profile |
26. | University of California Davis Medical Center (CA) | $2,172,615,324 | $2,132,575,905 | 586 | Explore This Profile |
27. | Northside Hospital Atlanta (GA) | $2,081,577,841 | $2,374,035,362 | 536 | Explore This Profile |
28. | The Johns Hopkins Hospital (MD) | $2,041,319,447 | $2,422,823,000 | 1,007 | Explore This Profile |
29. | Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia (PA) | $2,020,908,385 | $2,072,634,103 | 541 | Explore This Profile |
30. | Spectrum Health Butterworth Hospital (MI) | $2,009,495,322 | $2,062,098,572 | 1,078 | Explore This Profile |
31. | University of Kansas Hospital (KA) | $1,975,125,402 | $2,193,902,682 | 831 | Explore This Profile |
32. | Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center (OH) | $1,943,404,796 | $1,992,213,310 | 956 | Explore This Profile |
33. | Strong Memorial Hospital (NY) | $1,936,245,333 | $1,979,633,332 | 717 | Explore This Profile |
34. | Texas Childrens Hospital (TX) | $1,921,106,127 | $2,292,541,765 | 795 | Explore This Profile |
35. | Barnes-Jewish Hospital (MO) | $1,894,251,543 | $1,970,410,825 | 1,225 | Explore This Profile |
36. | UCHealth University of Colorado Hospital (CO) | $1,873,879,464 | $1,886,784,288 | 634 | Explore This Profile |
37. | Henry Ford Hospital (MI) | $1,862,863,623 | $1,985,828,062 | 682 | Explore This Profile |
38. | University Hospital (WI) | $1,861,601,000 | $1,900,288,000 | 599 | Explore This Profile |
39. | Norton Hospital (KY) | $1,860,274,286 | $1,870,503,186 | 340 | Explore This Profile |
40. | UPMC Presbyterian (PA) | $1,849,820,096 | $2,110,068,704 | 1,181 | Explore This Profile |
41. | UNC Medical Center (NC) | $1,846,906,307 | $1,975,190,702 | 771 | Explore This Profile |
42. | UC San Diego Medical Center - Hillcrest (CA) | $1,842,794,494 | $1,951,380,453 | 381 | Explore This Profile |
43. | North Shore University Hospital (NY) | $1,826,917,278 | $2,687,626,919 | 764 | Explore This Profile |
44. | Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center (CA) | $1,785,028,754 | $1,995,239,741 | 445 | Explore This Profile |
45. | Methodist University Hospital (TN) | $1,766,467,690 | $1,953,693,595 | 617 | Explore This Profile |
46. | Northwestern Memorial Hospital (IL) | $1,745,967,766 | $2,094,008,391 | 883 | Explore This Profile |
47. | Christiana Hospital (DE) | $1,740,416,567 | $2,080,777,680 | 906 | Explore This Profile |
48. | University Hospital (UT) | $1,729,555,480 | $1,759,863,550 | 472 | Explore This Profile |
49. | Rush University Medical Center (IL) | $1,696,845,816 | $2,074,624,760 | 576 | Explore This Profile |
50. | UH Cleveland Medical Center (OH) | $1,695,760,058 | $1,816,759,320 | 599 | Explore This Profile |
Fig 1. Data from Definitive Healthcare based on 2017 Medicare SAF data (most recent available), released in fall 2018. Calendar year 2018 data will be released in fall 2019. Because hospital fiscal years end at varying times throughout the calendar year, some data may not be precisely aligned.