Eight-five percent of New Hampshire hospitals continue to experience declining financial health as a result of the economic recession even though 95 percent have taken such cost-saving measures as cutting administrative expenses and staff, according to a new survey conducted by the New Hampshire Hospital Association in April. Sixty percent of community hospitals reported increases in the numbers of uninsured patient visits to their emergency departments and 70 percent said more patients were unable to pay for their care the first three months of this year compared to the same period last year. Also, 43 percent reported that their ability to access capital to make facility upgrades and clinical and information technology improvements has not improved, while 48 percent said it is getting worse. In addition, the survey found that the need for services subsidized by the hospitals, such as clinics, screenings and outreach, is increasing even as charitable contributions are down. New Hampshire’s health system has lost more than $400 million in investments since January 2008.
