Understanding Your Capital Options
By: Christopher T. Payne
(HFM May 2012)
Introduction:
As hospitals and health systems plan capital spending that requires financing, they should carefully weigh all their options.
Despite long-term interest rates returning to near-record lows after an increase early in 2011, uncertainty about healthcare reform and future funding for Medicare and Medicaid coupled with concerns about the economy as a whole caused many healthcare organizations to postpone financings in 2011. Long-term, publicly issued tax-exempt financing for healthcare organizations was down roughly 15 percent from 2010, with 453 issues totaling $26.8 billion in 2011 compared with 533 issues totaling $31.4 billion in 2010 (source: Thomson Reuters).