Baystate responds to hospital profitability report

A recent report from the Center for Health Information Analysis on Massachusetts hospital finances doesn't take into account the realities of running an integrated health system, Dennis W. Chalke, CFO and treasurer of Springfield, Mass.-based Baystate Health told MassLive.

CHIA collects and reports on annual and quarterly financial data from acute care hospitals across Massachusetts and released its report for FY 2015 Thursday.

The report revealed 52 of 65 Massachusetts hospitals ended FY 2015 with a net profit. Baystate Medical Center in Springfield was among the state's most profitable hospitals with a profit margin of 6.7 percent. The statewide median total profit margin for fiscal 2015 was 3.7 percent, according to CHIA.

However, the CHIA report doesn't show a complete picture of Baystate's finances, according to Mr. Chalke.

"When you look at these hospitals, you really have to look at the entire system," he told MassLive.

Baystate Health is multifaceted, and some parts, like its academic medical center, make money, and others don't. Mr. Chalke told Mass Live that profits in one area are spread across the system to support parts of the business that lose money. 

In early August, Baystate said it plans to lay off roughly 300 people due to a projected $75 million budget gap. 

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