Industry News | 06.10.25
America's Hospital-Bed Shortage Is About to Become a Crisis
By NAMSS Staff
Wall Street Journal (05/30/25) Jauhar, Sandeep
Experts are warning that hospitals may soon cease to function properly because of overcrowding, especially as new construction declines, occupancy rates soar, and the graying of America continues. An older population is sicker and more likely to go to the emergency room (ER) and require hospitalization for conditions like heart failure and dementia. A May study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association projected the need for an 11% increase in hospital bed capacity based on the aging population alone. Meanwhile, the American College of Emergency Physicians has termed ER boarding a national health crisis. Housing patients in the ER for prolonged periods can not only result in inadequate treatment, but also nearly double the daily cost of a patient’s care. Perhaps the biggest driver is the growing scarcity of unoccupied hospital beds. In response, hospitals have tried to reduce length of stay and readmissions, opened more urgent care clinics and ambulatory surgery centers, and embraced practices to optimize efficiency in bed utilization. Federal action is clearly needed, including training more healthcare workers and encouraging greater use of telemedicine. Finally, the U.S. will need to build more new hospitals. Currently, the U.S. has fewer than three hospital beds per 1,000 residents.
Read the full story from the Wall Street Journal.