Catholic Hospitals Not Fulfilling Mission of Providing Charity Care to Consumers in Need

By Consumers for Quality Care, on October 2, 2024

Catholic hospitals, like many nonprofit hospitals, are becoming more like big businesses, paying executives millions while patients struggle to pay for medical care, according to KFF Health News.  

Jessica Staten of Bellingham, Washington went to St. Joseph Medical Center to have her kidney stones removed. Despite having health insurance, Staten’s bill was over $5,000. She asked about financial assistance but was told she earned slightly too much to qualify. To pay off the debt, Staten had to take a line of credit out on her condominium. Although the interest rate to borrow against her home was more than 11 percent, it was still less than the interest rate the hospital offered to put her on a monthly payment plan. 

St. Joseph Medical Center is owned by PeaceHealth, which operates nine other hospitals. According to their IRS nonprofit tax disclosure form, PeaceHealth aims to “carry on the healing mission of Jesus Christ by promoting personal and community health, relieving pain and suffering, and treating each person in a loving and caring way.” Staten’s experience left her with the view that Catholic hospitals are only concerned about their bottom line. “It’s all about the money. That’s the way they think now at the hospital,” she said. 

Executives at many nonprofit Catholic hospitals earn millions of dollars each year, but their hospitals spend less on charity care than the amount they receive in tax breaks. For years, PeaceHealth sent bills to consumers without checking whether these patients qualified for financial assistance. Last year, the Washington state Attorney General ordered PeaceHealth to refund over $13 million to these consumers. 

These practices hurt consumers and contribute to the country’s growing medical debt crisis, all while hospitals pad their bottom lines and pay executives handsomely. 

CQC urges all hospitals, especially nonprofit hospitals, to uphold their end of the bargain to serve their communities and deliver care for patients when they need it most.