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Two years ago news coverage warned of a national nursing shortage. Vacancies surged, burnout dominated conversations, and hospitals stretched themselves to staff essential units. Today the sense of alarm has faded. Inside hospitals, however, the crisis has not passed. Administrators still struggle to fill shifts, and the conditions that pushed…

The financial performance of some of the country’s largest nonprofit and for-profit health systems in the third quarter of 2025 reflects a sector making cautious strides toward stability, but not all players are on equal footing. For-profit systems — including HCA Healthcare, Tenet Healthcare, Community Health Systems and Universal Health…

Artificial intelligence is only as strong as the data behind it. Healthcare leaders are working with their teams to build the infrastructure, governance, and culture necessary to support AI at scale. Healthcare leaders gathered at the AI Summit during the Becker’s CEO+CFO Roundtable in early November to discuss the need…

Hospitals and health systems have consistently focused on recruiting top talent. While this remains a key priority, retention is gaining prominence amid ongoing workforce challenges. In 2025, 2 in 5 healthcare workers reported feeling their role is unsustainable, and 1 in 4 said they are considering leaving the industry entirely,…

Internal medicine represents the largest primary care specialty, with 41.4% of all primary care physicians practicing in the field, according to new data from KFF. In contrast, geriatrics represents just 0.3% of the primary care workforce, underscoring a significant disparity in physician distribution as the U.S. population continues to age,…

As the U.S. works several levers to lower drug pricing, such as Medicare negotiating costs with drugmakers and President Donald Trump launching TrumpRx, a report from the IQVIA Institute quantified how much more the U.S. pays for medications.  IQVIA, a clinical research company, published a report Oct. 21 detailing global…

The workforce is top of mind for hospitals and health systems across the U.S., particularly as they focus on recruitment and retention amid today’s industry pressures. Here are 12 numbers to know about the workforce today, per reports recently covered by Becker’s: 1. The Bureau of Labor Statistics released its…

The Bureau of Labor Statistics released its September jobs report Nov. 20 — the agency’s first since the 43-day government shutdown from Oct. 1 to Nov. 12. Healthcare added 42,800 jobs for the month, roughly in line with the 12-month average of 42,000, according to the report. Here are four…

Nearly 40% of adults living in rural areas have turned to emergency departments for care that could have been handled in a primary care setting, pointing to persistent issues rural residents face when trying to access routine healthcare services, according to a Commonwealth Fund report published Nov. 17. The report,…

As signs point to a more-severe-than-normal flu season this year, hospitals might see more congestion among patients and in physical capacity. Several variables are intensifying this outlook as a new variant emerges, inoculation rates fall and measles outbreaks grow.  1. A new variant Overall flu activity is low, with influenza-related…

The overall U.S. healthcare system received a “C” grade from a broad survey of U.S. adults, according to the West Health-Gallup Center for Healthcare in America, which released its inaugural report, “State of the States 2025: Insights on Healthcare in America.” Nationwide, the healthcare system received a “D+” for cost,…

Healthcare job postings have declined 8.5% year over year as of Oct. 10, according to a third-quarter report from Indeed’s Hiring Lab. The report analyzed job postings and wage data for U.S. healthcare roles on the employment site. Here are seven things to know: 1. Overall healthcare job postings were…

California has the greatest number of high-performing nursing homes in the U.S., followed by Florida, according to U.S. News & World Report’s “2026 Best Nursing Homes” ratings, published Nov. 13. Hawaii has the highest rate of high-performing nursing homes, followed by the District of Columbia.  Compared to the national average,…

The persistent healthcare talent crisis has evolved from cyclical labor shortages to a structural workforce problem that’s reshaping how hospitals and health systems operate. To deliver quality care, meet safe staffing standards and rein in the cost of agency staff and travelers, a strategic approach to workforce planning is more…

Artificial intelligence has evolved from experimental pilots to a foundational part of healthcare strategy. Across eight sessions at the Becker’s CEO + CFO Roundtable AI Summit, hospital and health system leaders described how they are moving beyond hype to build governance, data discipline, and measurable impact. Ten key themes emerged…

Several smartwatches claim to be able to detect atrial fibrillation in wearers. But how accurate are they? That was the focus of an October meta-analysis in JACC: Advances that reviewed 28 studies spanning 17,349 patients. Here is where the devices ranked for accuracy: Sensitivity 1. Amazfit: 99% 2. Seiko Epson…

Healthcare operates in a highly disrupted market with multiple headwinds, including ongoing staff shortages, financial pressures, policy and regulatory changes and cyber threats. Disruption in the industry is most pronounced among clinical providers, according to the latest AlixPartners’ survey of more than 3,000 global executives across 10 sectors. Tailoring solutions provided the…

Jeff Metts, MD, has been named chief medical officer of Piedmont Newton Hospital in Covington, Ga.  Dr. Metts joins Atlanta-based Piedmont Healthcare from City of Hope Cancer Center Atlanta, where he most recently served as medical director of outpatient medicine, perioperative medicine and occupational health, according to a Nov. 17…

Risk-adjusted in-hospital mortality is once again improving at U.S. hospitals, even as they care for more complex, high-acuity patients after the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a study published Nov. 12 in JAMA Network Open. The study, conducted by the American Hospital Association and Vizient, analyzed more than 7.8 million inpatient…

U.S. healthcare wage disparities modestly narrowed during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a new analysis of wage data. The study, published Nov. 3 in Health Affairs, examined data from the Current Population Survey to identify trends in median earnings among healthcare workers between 2015 and 2024. Researchers from Minneapolis-based University…

In the past 12 months, community hospitals experienced a 10.6% increase in the average direct cost per case, while academic medical centers saw an 11.5% higher cost, according to a report from Sg2, a Vizient company.  Between the second quarter of 2024 and the second quarter of 2025, the average…

Kaufman Hall’s recent “National Hospital Flash Report” found the gap between high- and low-performing hospitals has continued to widen this year, despite a steady overall financial performance for nonprofit hospitals. The report, which secured data from 1,300 hospitals across the U.S., found nonprofit hospital adjusted year-to-date operating margins in September…

The U.S. again received a “D+” grade in March of Dimes’ annual report card on maternal and infant health. This marks the fourth consecutive year the U.S. has received a “D+”, pointing to stalled progress in addressing longstanding health disparities and access gaps in maternal health. In 2025, 10.4% of…

Of the 358 hospitals that have earned Leapfrog’s “A” safety grade for at least two consecutive years, 95% are part of a health system. Of the 11 hospitals that have earned consecutive “A” safety grades from The Leapfrog Group since 2012, all are affiliated with health systems.  “For the first…