PlumX Metrics
SSRN
Embed PlumX Metrics

Can Nonprofits Save Lives Under Financial Stress? Evidence from the Hospital Industry

SSRN Electronic Journal
2024
  • 0
    Citations
  • 582
    Usage
  • 1
    Captures
  • 0
    Mentions
  • 0
    Social Media
Metric Options:   Counts1 Year3 Year

Metrics Details

  • Usage
    582
    • Abstract Views
      438
    • Downloads
      144
  • Captures
    1
    • Readers
      1
      • SSRN
        1
  • Ratings
    • Download Rank
      422,839

Article Description

We compare the effects of external financing shocks on patient mortality at nonprofit and for-profit hospitals. Using confidential patient-level data, we find that patient mortality increases to a lesser extent at nonprofit hospitals than at for-profit ones facing exogenous, negative shocks to debt capacity. Such an effect is not driven by patient characteristics or their choices of hospitals. It is concentrated among patients without private insurance and patients with higher-risk diagnoses. Potential economic mechanisms include nonprofit hospitals' having deeper cash reserves and greater ability to maintain spending on medical staff and equipment, even at the expense of lower profitability. Overall, our evidence suggests that nonprofit organizations can better serve social interests during financially challenging times.

Bibliographic Details

Janet Gao; Tim Liu; Sara Malik; Merih Sevilir

Elsevier BV

Nonprofits; Hospitals; Financial Constraints; Health Outcomes

Provide Feedback

Have ideas for a new metric? Would you like to see something else here?Let us know