CommonSpirit Health is dealing with fallout from rising costs and lower patient acuity—challenges that have forced the nonprofit Catholic system to centralize functions and cut jobs.
The Chicago-based system said Monday it has cut leadership and administrative roles at the divisional and national levels, although it did not specify how many positions were affected. A spokesperson declined comment.
Confirmation of the cuts came as CommonSpirit reported a net loss of $244 million in its fiscal third quarter ended March 31, marking an improvement from a year-ago quarterly loss of $592 million.
Despite higher patient volumes, operating losses totaled $658 million during the quarter, with revenue from admissions affected by lower patient acuity and declining reimbursement levels. The numbers are not adjusted for income related to the California Provider Fee program, a policy designed to support hospitals treating Medicaid enrollees and uninsured patients.
CommonSpirit said it is focusing on patient volume growth and pushing for fewer payer denials and underpayments to increase revenue.
The health system also noted an approximately $160 million impact stemming from a ransomware attack in October, including lost revenue from interrupted operations and costs of correcting the breach. The system estimated the attack affected more than 600,000 people.
Quarterly revenue grew 0.2% to $8.28 billion, along with an investment-related gain of $443 million. Expenses increased 0.9% to $8.93 billion, factoring in a 2.9% increase for supplies and a 7% jump for purchased services.
Costs related to salaries and wages decreased 2.3%.
CommonSpirit said it will continue to make longer-term investments into nursing residencies and virtual care programs.
Earlier this month, CommonSpirit added to its footprint by acquiring five Utah hospitals and more than 40 affiliated clinics from Dallas-based Steward Health Care in a $705 million deal. Centennial, Colorado-based Centura Health will manage those operations. CommonSpirit and Alamonte Springs, Florida-based AdventHealth decided to disband their Centura joint venture earlier this year. CommonSpirit has agreed to oversee its hospitals and affiliated clinics across Colorado, Kansas and Utah.
