The Flex Monitoring Team (FMT) is pleased to share a new brief, Trends in Inpatient Revenue and Volume Among Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs). This analysis provides an updated look at how CAHs are navigating shifting care patterns in the years following the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency.
The brief highlights several important findings:
- Outpatient services now comprise more than 80% of total patient revenue for the average CAH, continuing a long‑term shift toward outpatient care.
- Inpatient average daily census (ADC) declined by 5.3% over the study period, with similar trends across rurality, region, ownership, and system affiliation.
- Inpatient daily revenue declined slightly when adjusted for inflation, while outpatient daily revenue increased by 50%.
Results show that growth in outpatient revenue—rather than steep inpatient declines—is driving changes in CAH revenue mix, with implications for sustainability, service availability, and potential REH transitions.