Arkansas Hospital Cost, Utilization Trends
The most recent edition of the American Hospital Association’s annual Hospital Statistics publication shows that hospital costs in Arkansas and the nation remained relatively stable during 1997, the latest full-year period for which data is available. The cost-per-day of care provided by hospitals in the state, adjusted to reflect outpatients as patient-day equivalents, rose 2.4% for the year. Nationally, those costs increased 2.6%. The report also showed that total hospital spending in Arkansas was up only 2.8% in 1997, versus a 4.1% overall increase for all U.S. hospitals.

The low rate of growth in costs was attributable to a combination of hospitals’ cost cutting efforts, and to little growth in utilization. In Arkansas, hospitals reported a total 346,426 admissions, a 0.8% increase over the 343,800 admissions in 1996. Inpatient days nudged upward only one-tenth of a percentage point, registering near 2.1 million in each year. Hospital utilization across the country didn’t fare much better. Although overall admissions rose 1.5% between 1996 and 1997, inpatient days of care provided in hospitals fell 0.6%.

Visits by patients in Arkansas to hospital outpatient departments and emergency rooms, which increased 13% between 1995 and 1996, slowed considerably in 1997 to a modest 2.1% rise. Surprisingly, the one area where the state’s hospitals reported significant increased utilization for the year was inpatient surgical procedures. Total in-hospital surgeries grew from 100,500 in 1996 to 111,400 in 1997, a 10.8% increase. At the same time, the number of outpatient surgical procedures fell one-half percent to 143,322, marking the first drop in that service category for Arkansas hospitals this decade. However, outpatient surgeries still accounted for more than 56% of all surgical procedures. Nationwide, total outpatient visits grew 2.3% in 1996, inpatient surgeries were up 4.6%, and outpatient surgical procedures increased 2.6%.

Comparative Utilization Indicators Per 1,000 Population, by State

*West South Central (WSC) Region = Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas
Source : American Hospital Association

Arkansas Hospitals Are Employment Leaders

Arkansas hospitals focus their attention each day on offering their communities the benefits of the highest quality healthcare provided by compassionate caregivers in a cost-effective manner. While doing that, they also are a major economic force in those communities and the state. Collectively, Arkansas hospitals employ more than 46,000 Arkansans, according to the 1999 edition of Hospital Statistics published by the American Hospital Association's (AHA) Health Forum. Those workers fill jobs in areas ranging from administrative and professional levels to highly skilled biomedical and technical fields to a variety of clerical, food service, and housekeeping positions, among others. They also share in an annual hospital payroll of more than $1.2 billion, which is channeled back into local economies when those employees pay their bills and buy other goods and services.

In many Arkansas counties, the local hospital is the single largest employee. Three Little Rock hospitals and health systems are counted among the state's 25 largest employers, according to Arkansas Business. Earlier this year, the weekly newspaper published its annual employer rankings which showed Baptist Health to be Arkansas' 7th largest employer, having 5,000 employees. St. Vincent Health (3,200 employees) ranked as the 13th largest employer, and Arkansas Children's Hospital (2,800 employees) was ranked 20th. Nine other Arkansas hospitals and health systems located in seven counties employ more than 1,000 workers each, according to AHA records. The top five employers in 1998, based on the Arkansas Business report, were Arkansas state government (63,000), Wal-Mart (32,500), Tyson Foods (24,445), the federal government (21,500), and ConAgra (5,433).

Arkansas Hospitals: Location, Classification, Beds, Special Units & Control

Arkansas Hospitals: Location, Classification, Beds, Special Units & Control