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Axios
12-05-2025
- Health
- Axios
Hospitals spend less in the community than what they save in tax breaks
Central Ohio's eight hospitals spent millions in our community from 2020-22 — but just one spent more than it received in tax breaks, according to data the nonprofit Lown Institute shared with Axios. Why it matters: Ohio's nonprofit hospitals receive a collective $2.2 billion in tax breaks each year. Hospitals are exempt from paying a variety of taxes due to their nonprofit status and the presumption that they give back, but the institute's latest report contends the two amounts typically aren't comparable. Zoom in: Two local hospitals — Nationwide Children's and OhioHealth's Riverside Methodist — rank among the worst in Ohio when their spending is compared with tax breaks. By the numbers: Children's has the second-largest "fair share deficit" statewide at $121 million, with nearly $168.8 million in breaks compared to $47.8 million in investments. It's also the largest deficit among all children's hospitals in the 20 states included in the report. Meanwhile, Riverside's $57.1 million deficit ranks fourth-largest in Ohio, with $89.7 million in breaks compared to $32.6 million in investments. Only Doctor's Hospital, also part of OhioHealth, had a surplus locally — spending $862,000 more than its $12.8 million in tax breaks. Yes, but: Hospitals disagree with the institute's methodology. How it works: Lown's community investment calculation includes free or discounted care; community health improvement services like free immunizations; subsidized services like free health clinics; and contributions to community groups and activities that drive community health, like affordable housing and environmental initiatives. The other side: The local hospitals' representatives tell Axios that calculation is flawed, because IRS guidelines also consider other things when calculating community value, like research expenditures, physician training and absorbed Medicaid and Medicare shortfalls. The American Hospital Association called the report"arbitrary" and "anything but 'fair.'" It commissioned a 2022 study that concluded "every dollar invested in nonprofit hospitals results in $9 in benefits delivered back to the community."
Yahoo
16-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Many Illinois hospitals receive tax exemptions, but how much do they help their communities? New report takes a look
CHICAGO — Mount Sinai Hospital ranks the fourth highest among hospitals across 20 states for spending far more money on charity care and helping its community than what it saves through tax exemptions, according to a new report from the Lown Institute. The hospital on Chicago's West Side spent an average of $78 million more a year on charity care and investing in its community than it saved from tax exemptions given to not-for-profit hospitals, between 2020 and 2022, according to the report from Lown, a Massachusetts-based think tank. The report also identified Illinois hospitals that have done the opposite — spent less on charity care and community investment than what they saved through tax exemptions. Among the 10 biggest offenders in Illinois are Endeavor Health's hospitals in Evanston, Glenview, Highland Park and Skokie (as a group), as well as Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, Advocate Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge and Northwestern Memorial Hospital, among others, according to the report. 'There are a lot of hospitals that actually give back a lot more directly to their communities in meaningful ways than they enjoy in terms of the tax benefit or tax exemption, but there are unfortunately a lot of hospitals that are not, that are in deficit,' said Dr. Vikas Saini, president of the Lown Institute. 'We have a system where there's a lot of out of balance.' The issue of whether hospitals should receive tax exemptions has been a topic of debate for years with some saying that many not-for-profit hospitals operate like profitable businesses and should have to pay more taxes. Hospital leaders, meanwhile, say they need the tax exemptions to continue to do important work and provide charitable care to patients who are unable to pay. Nonprofit hospitals receive local, state and federal tax exemptions, but are required to report to the IRS each year how much money they spend to benefit their communities. In Illinois, not-for-profit hospitals don't have to pay property taxes as long as the value of their charitable services is at least equal to their property tax savings. Most hospitals in Illinois are not-for-profit. The sometimes stark differences between hospitals in the same metropolitan area reflect a pattern in urban markets in which some hospitals with many resources 'are often inaccessible to low-income patients, while 'safety net' hospitals that serve more of these patients operate on thin margins,' according to the report. Mount Sinai, which serves many patients who are uninsured or on Medicaid, has long been a leader when it comes to spending on charity care and on helping its community, said Dr. Ngozi Ezike, president and CEO of Sinai Chicago. In addition to caring for patients regardless of their health insurance coverage, the hospital also works to help patients such as by paying for their transportation to medical care and giving car seats to new parents in need. 'We are a safety net that doesn't do the wallet biopsy and takes care of everyone that comes through our doors,' Ezike said. 'If we're serious about narrowing some of the gaps that we see between the communities that we serve and much more affluent communities in this very same city of Chicago we need to do more, not less.' Ezike acknowledged that it can be tough to spend so much on charity care and community support, and that the hospital is running in the red. She said the hospital relies on government funding, grants, philanthropy and corporate partnerships to help fill some of the gaps. In response to the report's findings, Endeavor Health said in a statement Tuesday that the Lown Institute's methodology 'paints an incomplete and misleading picture.' Endeavor said Lown misrepresents the scope and impact of its work by lumping four of its hospitals together as one, and leaves out certain types of contributions Endeavor makes to its communities. Each of the hospitals surpass the state's requirements for community benefits, according to the statement. 'In 2023, Endeavor Health provided nearly $509 million in total community benefits, including charitable care, medical research, education, and initiatives addressing the social drivers of health,' Endeavor said in the statement. 'The Lown Institute applies a one-size-fits-all approach across nearly 2,000 hospitals that fails to account for local context or system-level investments.' Advocate Health Care said in a statement Tuesday, 'We remain focused on redefining care for all, contributing $1.2 billion in charitable care and services across the Chicago area annually.' Northwestern Memorial did not respond to a request for comment Tuesday afternoon. Across Illinois, Lown found that 63% of private, nonprofit hospitals saved more from tax exemptions than they spent on community investment. Lown analyzed data for 140 nonprofit hospitals in Illinois, using data from the IRS and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services as well as municipal property data. Lown looked at more than 1,800 hospitals across 20 states. In all, Illinois nonprofit hospitals received an average of $2.3 billion in tax exemptions each year between 2020 and 2022, according to the report. During that same time, Illinois nonprofit hospitals spent an average of $1.4 billion a year on charity care and community investments. The four Endeavor hospitals saved an average of $152 million more a year in tax exemptions, as a group, than they spent on charity care and on community benefit, according to Lown. Advocate Christ saved an annual average of $71 million more in tax exemptions than it spent on charity care and community benefit, Advocate Lutheran saved an average of $68 million more, and Northwestern saved an average of $50 million a year more. Chicago-area hospitals on the other end of the list – those that spent more on community investment than they saved through tax exemptions — include Franciscan Health Olympia Fields, St. Bernard Hospital and Health Care Center, Holy Cross Hospital and Endeavor Health Swedish Hospital, according to the report. Olympia Fields spent an average of $16 million more a year on charity care and community benefit than it received through tax exemptions, St. Bernard spent an average of $12 million more a year, and Holy Cross and Swedish hospitals each spent $11 million more a year on average, according to the report.
Chicago Tribune
16-04-2025
- Business
- Chicago Tribune
Afternoon Briefing: Aldermen stall mayor's housing loan fund plan
Good afternoon, Chicago. A downtown alderman said today he's negotiating with Mayor Brandon Johnson's administration on a new citywide teen curfew, averting what was expected to be a City Council showdown over how to address chaotic gatherings during the summer despite the mayor's office saying a deal has not been reached. Ald. Brian Hopkins, 2nd, texted some of his colleagues in the morning that he will no longer proceed with forcing a vote on an 8 p.m. curfew downtown after a series of so-called teen takeover trends ended in violence in his ward. Rather, he plans to introduce new legislation to grant Chicago police brass the authority to declare roving curfews for unaccompanied minors anywhere in the city on an as-needed basis. Also today, Johnson reached a buzzer beater union deal to clear the way for his 'Green Social Housing' plan, only for aldermen to spurn his hopes for quick vote by sidelining the measure moments later. Here's what else is happening today. And remember, for the latest breaking news in Chicago, visit and sign up to get our alerts on all your devices. In Illinois, Democrats tout pro-labor bona fides, but sometimes push back when their staffs seek unions Advocates say the real hesitation of bosses to recognize unions is the unwillingness of even self-professed pro-labor employers to give up control over their staff. Read more here. Lawmaker calls for study of AI-powered cameras in effort to make DuSable Lake Shore Drive safer Federal trial of ex-Ald. Carrie Austin may not proceed due to her health: judge Many Illinois hospitals receive tax exemptions, but how much do they help their communities? New report takes a look. Mount Sinai Hospital ranks the fourth highest among hospitals across 20 states for spending far more money on charity care and helping its community than what it saves through tax exemptions, according to a new report from the Lown Institute. Read more here. More top business stories: Column: Chicago Bulls rookie Matas Buzelis is ready for his close-up. He credits Billy Donovan's tough love. Matas Buzelis will get his first chance to show what he can do on a bigger stage tonight when the Bulls take on the Miami Heat at the United Center in a do-or-die play-in game. Read more here. More top sports stories: 'Music is not a recipe': Violinist Itzhak Perlman talks about putting his life into an autobiographical show Technically, it's not a one-man show — Itzhak Perlman will be joined by pianist Rohan de Silva, a longtime collaborator — but it's every bit as intimate, interspersing musical selections with personal anecdotes, photos and clips from the 2017 documentary 'Itzhak.' Read more here. More top Eat. Watch. Do. stories: Column: John Mulaney holds Netflix hostage: Week Six Mavis Staples will headline Chicago Blues Fest 2025 RFK Jr.'s mixed message about the measles outbreaks draws criticism from health officials Health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s efforts to contain an epidemic in a tight-knit, religious community in West Texas have run counter to established public health strategies deployed to end past epidemics. Read more here.
Axios
16-04-2025
- Health
- Axios
Des Moines hospitals top Iowa's "fair share" charity deficit list
Two major Des Moines hospitals fell $70 million short on community support despite tax breaks, according to a report released Wednesday by the nonpartisan Lown Institute. Why it matters: The gap raises questions about whether tax breaks are doing their job — and whether vulnerable Iowans are paying the price. Driving the news: UnityPoint Health's Iowa Methodist Medical Center and MercyOne Des Moines Medical Center had the state's most significant gaps between the value of their tax exemptions and what they spend on charity care and community investment — $47 million and $23 million, respectively. Of the tax records of 56 Iowa nonprofit hospitals analyzed in the report, 70% had deficits, totaling a charitable shortfall of $162 million a year. Zoom in: Iowa's hospitals received $331 million in tax breaks yearly, with property tax exemptions making up the largest proportion. UnityPoint owns $500 million worth of real estate in the metro while MercyOne owns $360 million, according to the report. The big picture: Lown found an overall annual charitable deficit of $11.5 billion among the more than 1,800 nonprofit hospitals across 20 states it reviewed. It concluded that that's enough to feed more than a third of all food-insecure people or build 150,000 more affordable housing units. What they're saying: Iowa could improve accountability by setting minimum eligibility standards for financial assistance and requiring hospitals to screen patients for assistance to ensure all eligible patients receive discounts. The report's authors wrote that policymakers should address misaligned incentives in hospital business models. A spokesperson for MercyOne said the hospital could not immediately respond to Axios' requests for comment on Tuesday, and UnityPoint did not reply to a request for comment.
