HCA earned a net profit of nearly $1.9 billion on revenues of $18.6 billion in the second quarter. Those numbers were up from about $1.7 billion and $17.5 billion, respectively, in the spring of 2024. Equivalent patient days ticked up 0.7 percent to more than 4.8 million while revenue per equivalent admission rose nearly 4 percent to $18,276.
Hazen and Marks said the uncertainty around the future of enhanced tax credits for consumers buying federal marketplace policies has led them to start developing strategies that would let HCA cut costs to offset volumes they might lose. Despite analysts’ best attempts to get details on those plans, the executives said those will be made public in January.
“We’re not ready to give you a revenue implication just yet because it would be inappropriate for us to do that until we have greater clarity on exactly how this lands [and] where some of these people go if they do, in fact, lose coverage,” Hazen said.
Also of note: Mark said HCA is close to hitting something of labor landmark. HCA’s allocated 4.3 percent of its salaries, wages and benefits spending during the second quarter to contract labor. During and in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, that figure peaked at more than double that figure and Marks pointed out that HCA’s pre-pandemic spending on contract workers was only a tick or two lower than Q2’s.
Shares of HCA (Ticker: HCA) slipped about 2 percent after executives announced Q2 results. They closed July 28 at about $340 after recovering most of that ground. They’re up slightly over the past six months, which has grown the company’s market capitalization to about $82 billion.
