Most Oregon hospitals are reeling from higher operating costs, leading to half of them reporting operating losses in the first quarter of this year, KTVZ reported Aug. 10.
Hospitals across the state ended the first quarter with $103.5 million in operating losses, mostly due to rising operational costs and employee payroll, according to a report released Aug. 9 from the Oregon Health Authority.
"OHA recognizes rising personnel expenses are a growing concern for Oregon’s hospitals," Dave Baden, the health authority's CFO, told the publication. "Anecdotally, we hear that temporary staffing costs made up a large portion of the increased expense. We hope that with a return to normal staffing, some of the expense growth will taper off."
Operating costs grew by $559.1 million compared to the first quarter of 2021. Payroll accounted for $330 million of this growth.