Nashville, Tenn.-based HCA Healthcare saw outpatient surgery volume decline for the second consecutive quarter because of lower Medicaid and self-pay volumes, executives explained in a July 23 earnings call transcribed by Seeking Alpha.
HCA saw 254,371 same facility outpatient surgeries, compared with 259,733 in 2023, a 2.1% decrease.
Here are five things to know:
1. The decline is "exclusively in Medicaid and uninsured," HCA Healthcare CEO Sam Hazen said in the call.
2. HCA's revenue and profitability grew in the ASC and hospital outpatient surgery increased in the quarter despite the volume decline, Mr. Hazen added.
3. Mr. Hazen speculated that the decline in volume could be from "patients who migrated from Medicaid into the exchanges through the redetermination process, maybe in a different seasonality category with respect to when they access services," so the volume decline could level out in the second half of the year.
4. "I think it's important to understand that the revenue growth — the service level growth that we've seen in our outpatient surgery business — has been solid and produced a good financial outcome for the company," Mr. Hazen said.
5. HCA's same-store ASC revenue growth was about 8% in the second quarter, CFO Mike Marks said in the call.