The Peru Gazette

Lower number of patient visits during pandemic continues to fuel deficit. 

PLATTSBURGH, NY (05/18/2021) – As low patient visits and increased COVID-19 related expenses persisted through the first six months of its 2021 Fiscal Year (FY2021), the University of Vermont Health Network – Champlain Valley Physicians Hospital (CVPH) reported today that it lost almost $8 million between October 1, 2020 and March 31, 2021 despite receiving $289,000 in stimulus money in October 2020.

The hospital’s net patient service revenue, the key revenue indicator, was $165.5 million, $15.9 million less than expected.  Patient discharges fell 17.7% short of budget, October 1, 2019 and March 31, 2020 (pre-COVID).   With a drop in patients visiting the Emergency Room, visits were 13,506, 21.5% below budget and 22.3% lower than last year.

Alice Hyde Medical Center and CVPH Sr. Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Christopher Hickey speculated on the cause, “It’s hard to pinpoint the reason behind the drop in inpatient and emergency admissions. We would expect people to come to the hospital, COVID or not.  Much of what we lost is the lower acuity patients. Did we lose them because they went somewhere else?  I doubt it. This phenomenon is being experienced across the country.” The Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) reports emergency rooms visits are down 25% nationwide. He added, “Our patients may still come back, and we will be ready to care for them when they do.”

Team Continues to ShineWhile salary expenses remained on par with FY2020, expense reductions were found by slowing or pausing various programs, services and purchases not critical to patient care. Hickey credits the team for doing an exceptional job managing expenses, coming in at $183.3 million, $9 million under budget, though these efforts unfortunately were not enough to make up the deficit.