Who owns most of the hospitals in the US?
David Ramirez
Updated on September 01, 2026
Health care facilities are largely owned and operated by private sector businesses. 58% of community hospitals in the United States are non-profit, 21% are government-owned, and 21% are for-profit.
Who are the owners of hospitals?
Categories of hospital ownership include propriety, private nonprofit, and Government. Gross profits tend to be higher for proprietary hospitals than for nonprofit hospitals, indicating that costs are lower and/or charges are higher for these hospitals.
Who owns most of the hospitals?
In 1988, 72.1 percent of medical practices were owned by physicians. In some parts of the health care industry, private equity firms dominate. For example, TeamHealth, owned by Blackstone, and Envision Healthcare, owned by KKR, provide staffing for about a third of the country's emergency rooms.
How many privately owned hospitals are in the US?
United States
Of that total, 2,904 are public hospitals, and 1,060 are private. There are a total of 795,603 staffed beds in public hospitals and 118,910 staffed beds in private hospitals. Public hospitals had about 33.6 million admissions annually while private hospitals had about 1.8 million admissions annually.
What percentage of U.S. hospitals are privately owned?
4. Out of total registered hospitals, about 20.2 percent are state-owned, 58.5 percent are nonprofit and 21.3 percent are for-profit.
19 related questions foundWhat type of ownership structure is most common among US hospitals?
A growing number of hospitals are investor-owned, with excess profits going to shareholders. However, the majority (58%) of hospitals are still not-for-profit, with excess funds remaining in the hospital.
Are there any government owned hospitals in the US?
About 200 hospitals are operated by the federal government in the United States. These hospitals provide care for routine medical and surgical problems for specific patient populations, such as active military personnel.
Which US hospitals are for-profit?
Some of the largest for-profit hospital chains in the U.S. include Hospital Corporation of America, Tenet, and HealthSouth. For-profit facilities like these are generally the highest-billing hospitals in the country.
What percent of US hospitals are for-profit?
Nearly a quarter — 24 percent — of community hospitals in the U.S. were classified as for-profit in 2019, while more than 57 percent were nonprofit and nearly 19 percent were controlled by a state, county or city government.
How many hospitals are owned by private equity?
Some facts and figures include: Between 2003 and 2017, there were 42 private equity deals to purchase hospitals or hospital systems. These affected 282 hospitals in 36 states. Private equity investments in healthcare increased from $23.1 billion in 2015 to $78.9 billion in 2019.
Who owns most of the hospitals in California?
Four nonprofit multi-hospital corporations own about half of California's rural hospitals: Adventist Health, Catholic Healthcare West, Sutter Health, and the Sisters of Saint Joseph of Orange.
What are the three major types of hospital ownership?
Hospitals were grouped into three main ownership types: (1) public hospitals run by the local authorities, the towns and the "Länder"; (2) private, voluntary, non-profit-making hospitals run by churches or non-profit-making organisations; (3) private, for-profit hospitals run as free commercial enterprises.
Who is the administrator of a hospital?
Hospital administrators oversee the organizational side of health services. Either working in a team or independently, they make sure a medical facility is employing effective and efficient practices that deliver the best care possible. What a doctor is to a patient, a hospital administrator is to a medical facility.
What city has the most hospital beds?
The New York City metro area has the most beds compared to the rest of the country. Still, that is not enough capacity to meet the crushing demand.
Are most American hospitals non profit?
According to Bizfluent, the majority of U.S. hospitals are nonprofit. Their tax-exempt status requires them to provide more community-based health programs and to attend to all patients irrespective of financial status.
What hospitals own investors?
Most are part of publicly-traded multi-hospital chains like HCA, Tenet and Community Health Systems; others are owned private equity funds as part of their investment portfolio. They are governed by boards elected by their shareholders. They pay local, state and federal taxes.
Where are most for-profit hospitals?
10 states with the most for-profit hospitals
- Texas — 53.2 percent.
- Nevada — 52.3 percent.
- Florida — 52.1 percent.
- New Mexico — 43.9 percent.
- Arizona — 43.4 percent.
- Louisiana — 41.8 percent.
- Tennessee — 39.1 percent.
- Oklahoma — 38.4 percent.
Are most U.S. hospitals privately owned?
Health care facilities are largely owned and operated by private sector businesses. 58% of community hospitals in the United States are non-profit, 21% are government-owned, and 21% are for-profit.
Who funds hospitals in America?
Financing for hospital services comes from a multitude of private insurers as well as the joint federal-state Medicaid program, the federal Medicare program, and out-of-pocket costs paid by insured and uninsured people.