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Abstract

This article provides evidence of the growing similarity in capacity of for-profit and nonprofit hospitals in the United States. Between 1960 and 2000, the typical nonprofit hospital shrank from being 3 times as large as the average for-profit hospital to being merely one-third larger. Analysis of aggregate hospital data implies that the convergence in capacity is replicated by the growing similarity between nonprofit and for-profit hospitals in the number of admissions and average lengths of stay. An analysis of hospital-level data reveals that the convergence was driven primarily by entry, exit, and ownership switches, rather than expansions or downsizing of existing hospitals. Further research is needed to uncover the driving forces that led to this growing similarity between nonprofit and for-profit hospitals.

Keywords

hospitals convergence mixed-ownership equilibrium capacity

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Trends in Hospital Ownership Type and Capacity

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