Columbia-based University of Missouri Health Care reported an operating income of $49.3 million (2.8% margin) for the fiscal year ending June 30, improving on the $34.7 million gain (2.1% margin) reported in the previous fiscal year.

Philadelphia-based Rite Aid has completed financial restructuring and successfully emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy after the U.S. drugstore chain filed for protection last October. It will now operate as a private company, according to a Sept. 3 news release. 

Boston Medical Center has reached agreements with Dallas-based Steward Health Care to acquire and run both Brockton-based Good Samaritan Hospital and St. Elizabeth's Medical Center.

From two private equity firms striking a deal to acquire R1 RCM to Conifer lining up a contract to provide RCM services to five Alabama hospitals, here are eight revenue cycle management headlines that Becker's reported in August: 

MercyOne Newton (Iowa) Medical Center is pausing its labor and delivery services indefinitely, effective after Oct. 15 due to Newton Clinic ending its recruitment of physicians who are dedicated to labor and delivery obstetrics services.

Health systems' second-quarter financial results point to the beginning of a slow and sustained recovery, but challenges including high labor costs and the ongoing disconnect between revenue generation and expense requirements persist. 

Healthcare is seeing an uptick in health system mergers and acquisitions post-pandemic, reflecting the industry's ongoing shift towards consolidation to enhance care delivery, expand reach and strengthen financial stability. 

Despite continued high labor costs, inflation and the rising costs of medical equipment and supplies, some nonprofit health systems reversed operating losses from the second quarter of 2023 and are back in the black in the second quarter of this year.

While many health systems continue to see sustainable improvements to their financial results, others are still working to improve upon their losses. 

Surveys of employers are making one thing clear: Healthcare costs are rising faster than they did before the pandemic, and those costs are being driven by inflation, the increasing use of weight loss medications, and higher overall medical expenses. As employers and insurers grapple with these escalating costs, hospitals will undoubtedly be affected. 

Chillicothe, Ohio-based Adena Health System reported $3.3 million in operating income (1.8% margin) in the second quarter, reversing a $2.9 million loss (-1.6% margin) from the same period in 2023, according to financial documents published Aug. 27.

Dallas-based Steward Health Care is set to close two of its Massachusetts hospitals, Boston-based Carney Hospital and Ayer-based Nashoba Valley Medical Center, at 7 a.m. Aug. 31.

Providence, R.I.-based Lifespan reported an operating income of $11.5 million (1.3% margin) in the third quarter of 2024, up from an operating income of $8.8 million (1.1% margin) posted over the same period last year. 

MedHQ, a healthcare advisory and administrative service provider, has acquired Trajectory Revenue Cycle Services. 

Boston-based Tufts Medicine posted a $40.7 million operating loss (-7.9% margin) for the three months ended June 30, improving on the $61.9 million loss (-9.6% margin) reported in the same period during 2023, according to financial documents published Aug. 30.

Fitch downgraded DuBois, Pa.-based Penn Highlands Healthcare's rating from "A-" to "BBB."

Pittsburgh-based Allegheny Health Network reported an operating loss of $25.9 million (-2.1% margin) in the second quarter of 2024, an improvement over a $47.8 million operating loss (-4.2 margin) posted over the same period last year. 

Cambridge, Mass.-based Beth Israel Lahey Health reported a $23.3 million operating loss (-1% margin) for the three months ended June 30, improving on a $15.3 million loss (-0.8% margin) in the same period in 2023. 

Hospitals' latest financial results point to the beginning of a slow and sustained recovery Fitch said in an Aug. 12 report.

West Des Moines, Iowa-based UnityPoint Health reported $33.9 million in operating income (2.6% margin) in the second quarter, reversing a $4.2 million operating loss (-0.4% margin) in the same period last year.