Hospitals Industry Profile

Companies in this industry provide medical, diagnostic, and treatment services to people on an inpatient and outpatient basis at specialized medical, surgery, emergency, and other health care facilities. Major companies include Community Health Systems, HCA Healthcare, and Tenet Healthcare (all based in the US), as well as Apollo Hospitals (India), Fraser Health (Canada), and Ramsay Health Care (Australia).

The hospital services market is expected to reach over $16 trillion by 2027, driven by the rise in prevalence of chronic diseases, aging population, rise in disposable income especially in the developing countries, and spike in the penetration of health insurance services, according to Precedence Research. According to the Nation Master, Japan, United States, Mexico, South Korea, Germany, and France have the most hospitals.

Hospitals in the US is about 6,600 establishments with an annual revenue of about $1 trillion.

COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE

Hospitals are under extreme pressure to lower costs while improving quality of care. Government payers and insurers are nudging patients toward less-costly outpatient care, reducing the number of routine inpatient procedures conducted at hospitals. The trend is encouraged by advances in medical technologies that improve recovery times. As reimbursements shift toward pay-for-performance protocols and away from procedure-based payments, hospitals may be rewarded or penalized based on quality and efficiency standards, such as reducing repetitive ER visits and hospitalizations. Eliminating wasteful processes is essential, as operating margins are slim, and the ability to ...