Auditor's report finds Samaritan in good health

MOSES LAKE — An independent auditor's report found Samaritan Healthcare in Moses Lake is in strong financial health compared with other hospitals.

"I would say you're relatively strong compared with your peers," LeMaster & Daniels Member Mike Sonner told the hospital board at a meeting Monday.

The report covers financial details from December 31, 2005 through December 31, 2006.

Sonner said 2006 was a rough financial year for many hospitals due to the economy, decreasing Medicare payments and a high turnaround of physicians.

"A lot of the smaller facilities out here lost physicians," Sonner noted.

One hospital lost two surgeons. If surgeons are not quickly replaced, a hospital's performance can decline, he said.

Samaritan Healthcare's profit was just below 5 percent in 2006, compared with 5.7 percent in 2005. Statewide in 2005, the average profit for health-care providers was 5.5 percent.

Statewide figures for 2006 are not yet available, Sonner said. He expects statewide figures to decline for 2006.

Many hospitals are struggling to meet the bottom line, he noted.

"It's been a tough past couple of years for a lot of providers," Sonner said. "You're one of the better performing of our hospitals, both urban and rural, that we audit around here."

The gross patient revenue was $99.6 million in 2006. Approximately $48.4 million was not collected because agencies including Medicare and Medicaid did not pay the full amounts billed to them, he noted.

Bad debts totaled nearly $2.6 million, leaving a net revenue of $48.6 million.