The addition of new system members, as well as strong outpatient activity, helped offset lower inpatient volume during the first six months of 2014 for UnityPoint Health, helping surpluses and margins to improve.
The West Des Moines, Iowa-based not-for-profit system, which includes hospitals in Iowa, Illinois and Wisconsin, reported revenue of $1.8 billion for the six months ended June 30, a 32.4% increase over the $1.4 billion recorded in the year-ago period. The improvement came largely from the addition of several healthcare organizations since November 2013—Proctor Health Care, Peoria, Ill., and Meriter Health Services and Physicians Plus Insurance Corp., both in Madison, Wis.
But even without the new members, and in spite of inpatient discharges that dropped 6.1%, operating revenue increased 2.9%, according to management.