SPOTLIGHT
The Perfect Storm In October 1991, several severe weather fronts along the Northeastern coast of the U.S. converged to create one of the most menacing hurricanes of that decade. Meteorologists called it “the perfect storm,” a confluence of bad events coming together to create a more critical situation.
Health care today is in the midst of its own perfect storm. Absent the gale force winds, rain and waves, hospitals and clinics are being hammered by some of the lowest reimbursement rates in decades, costly government regulations and mandates, and a post-COVID inflationary economy that is crippling the supply chain and significantly increasing costs. “It sounds bad, because it is pretty bad,” says Scripps Health president and CEO, Chris Van Gorder. “Today health care is navigating a financial storm unlike anything it has ever seen. More than half of California’s hospitals ended 2022 with a financial loss and 1 in 5 is at risk of closing. We all rely on hospitals and health systems to help others, but now they’re the ones that need some help.”
28 SAN DIEGO HEALTH | FALL 2023
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