10 Largest Hospitals and Health Systems in America

Below you can find the list of  the 10 largest hospitals and health systems in the US. For detailed coverage of this topic, please take a look at this article.

10. Providence

Number of hospitals: 51

Providence Health & Services is a Catholic health system and has around 120,000 employees. In 2020, it obtained more than $500 million from the government amidst the coronavirus pandemic.

9. Baylor Scott & White Health

Number of hospitals: 52

Baylor Scott & White Health was formed recently, just 7 years ago in 2013, and in addition to its 52 hospitals, also has around 7,300 physicians and more than 1,000 care sites. The health system has around 7.5 million patients every single year and with its 49,000 employees, provides high quality health care which is why 17 of its hospitals are featured among reports of America’s best hospitals.

8. Tenet Healthcare (NYSE:THC)

Number of hospitals: 65

Tenet Healthcare is a major healthcare company with 65 hospitals and more than 500 healthcare sites, and is one of the oldest health systems in our list, having been founded 51 years ago in 1969. The company earned $18.4 billion in revenue in 2019 and made a net loss of around $232 million. It employs 113,000 people and has grown over the years both organically and through major acquisitions. It has been involved in major controversies including psychiatric fraud, unnecessary heart surgeries, medicare fraud and tax dodging, which is why its reputation is not as golden as some of the other companies here.

7. LifePoint Health

Number of hospitals: 88

The 21 year old health system has 88 hospitals present in around 30 states, and earns nearly $9 billion in revenue each year.  The company has 60,000 employees and is considered to be one of the best companies in healthcare when measured by quality.

6. Trinity Health

Number of hospitals: 92

You will see a few Catholic health systems in our list, and Trinity Health is no exception. The health system has around 119,000 employees, of which 5,300 are physicians and earned over $18 billion in 2019 alone. It serves 20 US states.

5. Community Health Systems (NYSE:CYH)

Number of hospitals: 93

Community Health Systems has a history of more than 30 years, in which it has been acquiring hospitals and is now present in 16 states in the United States. It is traded on the stock exchange and has earned more than $18 billion in revenue in 2019, while also earning a healthy operating income. It currently has 120,000 employees and Chinese billionaire Tianqio Chen has a 22.2% ownership in the Fortune 500 company.

4. CommonSpirit Health

Number of hospitals: 137

The second biggest Catholic healthcare system in the US is CommonSpirit Health, which has more than 700 care sites and has around 150,000 employees. It was only founded in February 2019 after the merger of two non profit hospital systems. 25,000 physicians help treat millions of patients in 20 US states and it is the most recent health system in our list.

3. Ascension

Number of hospitals: 151

Ascension is one of the biggest private healthcare systems in the world, and its no surprise that it earns a place in our list of largest hospitals and health systems in America, and was founded 21 years ago in 1999. The health system has around 150,000 employees and is a Catholic enterprise, which earned around over $550 million in operating income and over $15.5 billion in cash while also operating a venture fund. It operates around 2,700 sites and is active in 20 states in the US, reporting around 25 million patient visits every year in addition to over 3 million ER visits.

2. Veteran’s Health Administration

Number of hospitals: 170

Veteran’s Health Administration leads me to another path where I could discuss another major issue plaguing the US, in how it treats its veterans. Now, I count myself among the people who think the US’s decision to become a self appointed defender of wrongs in the world and invading countries causing more damage than relief is a misguided one at best, but how it treats it veterans is horrendous, which is why veterans have abnormally high rates of suicide and homelessness. However, the Veteran’s Health Administration, administered by the United States Department of Veteran Affairs, which has been said to provide a quality of care which is even better than that found privately, and this is mainly thanks to an annual budget of around $85 billion.

1. HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA)

Number of hospitals: 186

Topping the list of the 10 largest hospitals and health systems in America is HCA Healthcare, which has 186 and nearly 100,000 registered nurses across the world, in addition to around 46,000 active and affiliated physicians. The health care system is responsible for the treatment of around 35 million patients, while also accounting for 9.2 million emergency visits. Unfortunately, in an indictment of American healthcare, it is a for profit company, which means its focus is on profits and not providing affordable healthcare to the country. This has allowed it to earn over $50 billion in revenue in 2019 alone, which is why Fortune named it one of the biggest companies in the US.

It also had profits of more than $3.5 billion while providing to more than 280,000 people. While it is mainly based in Nashville, Tennessee it has a strong presence in more than 21 states across the US as well as the UK and in addition to the 186 hospitals, also has more than 2,000 sites of cares as well. The company also publishes medical studies in peer-reviewed journals and surprisingly for an American healthcare company, has actually consistently been called among the most ethical countries in the entire world. In fact, it has been in the most ethical companies in the world list by Ethisphere Institute since 2010 and hasn’t dropped off since.

See also: 11 best places to retire overseas for affordable and efficient healthcare and 17 countries with universal healthcare in 2017