In recent years, a clear shift from inpatient to outpatient care has changed the face of healthcare, impacting operations, business models, staffing, and capital. Ambulatory centers carry out increasing numbers of medical procedures following advancements in healthcare technologies, cost management incentives, and consumer-focused services. There is a significant rise in the utilization of non-traditional sites of service such as ambulatory surgery centers, community health centers, primary care clinics, and telehealth.
has considerably grown over the years. Since 2007, according to the
, nearly a hundred thousand ambulatory care establishments have opened across the country.
Will outpatient revenue outpace inpatient revenue?
As of 2022, the
revenue of ambulatory health care services in the U.S. was estimated at over a trillion U.S. dollars, while the
outpatient care centers’ revenue was estimated to be around 160 billion. Nonetheless, inpatient care continued to generate more hospital revenue. However, in recent years, the gap between hospital inpatient revenue and outpatient revenue narrowed. In 2020,
hospital outpatient care revenue notably exceeded 500 billion U.S. dollars. Outpatient revenue has been growing faster than inpatient revenue and will undoubtedly surpass it soon.
Outpatient care during the coronavirus pandemic
Although outpatient figures were increasing steadily in recent years, foot traffic reduced significantly during the coronavirus pandemic. In 2020, the
number of outpatient visits among hospitals in the U.S. decreased, and subsequently, the hospital outpatient revenue. The outpatient care market has yet to recover fully from the pandemic. Nonetheless, the shift of patients away from inpatient settings is bound to expand because of cost-effectiveness and patient preferences.
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