How we could change the community benefit standard for the better
Hospitals taken in billions more than they spend on communities. How could we change the nonprofit hospital community benefit standard to improve accountability? More
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What have we learned after ten years of “Choosing Wisely”?
Over the past decade, what has the Choosing Wisely program taught us about strategies and obstacles to reducing low-value care? Vikas Saini discusses on the NEJM podcast. More
VIDEO: Are nonprofit hospitals earning their tax breaks?
Are nonprofit hospital earning their tax breaks? Watch the video from our recent fair share spending launch to learn more. More
Health systems that gave the most, least charity care compared to their tax exemptions: Lown Institute
Health systems across the U.S. made Lown Institute's new rankings lists for organizations where charity care and community investment spending was less or more than the value of their tax exemption. The rankings, released April 12 by the nonpartisan healthcare think tank, examine meaningful community benefit spending for nonprofit hospital systems nationwide. More
Think tank says Cleveland Clinic still among hospitals with highest disparity between tax breaks and community benefit
The Lown Hospitals Index 2022 Community Benefit ranking found the Clinic had the fourth-highest fair share deficit among U.S. nonprofit hospitals at $611 million. The fair share deficit is the difference between the estimated amount a hospital system receives in tax breaks versus the amount it directly invests into its community. More
Largest U.S. Hospital Systems Skimp on Charity Care, Report Says
Chicago hospitals rank high on fair-share deficit list
“It’s important for all of us to start understanding exactly how tax exemptions are working and what we’re actually getting for it,” says Dr. Vikas Saini, president of the Lown Institute. “The dollars we’re not seeing in taxes are dollars that could be spent on education, firefighters, police and safety, nutrition programs—you name it.” More
PRESS RELEASE: U.S. nonprofit hospitals get billions more in tax breaks than they spend on charity care and community investment
Nonprofit hospital systems are expected to give back to their communities in amounts that justify their massive tax breaks. But a new report from the Lown Institute shows this is rarely the case. More
Advocate, Northwestern hospitals haven’t spent their ‘fair share’ on charity, new report says
“It’s an important issue because our nonprofit hospitals really are participants in a social compact,” said Dr. Vikas Saini, president and CEO of the Lown Institute, a Massachusetts-based nonprofit. “This is now a big business, there are many many dollars flowing through. It behooves us to understand what the tax exemption is doing, what it’s for and whether it’s still a fair dispensation.” More
The best hospitals…in the world?
What goes into measuring the "world's best hospitals"? More
3D mammograms aren’t the solution to false positives in breast cancer screening
One of the big selling points of 3D mammograms is their potential to reduce false positive results. However, a new study shows that 3D mammograms don't reduce false positives as much as you would think. More
Hospital Fair Share Spending
Register now for our Fair Share launch on April 12! More
The lasting impact of hospital segregation
What drives hospital segregation and how can we combat this trend? More
Upping our social investments for health
Can doctors "prescribe" social supports like financial assistance to improve health? More
Aduhelm sparks action on accelerated approval process
The approval of Alzheimer's drug Aduhelm through the accelerated pathway has brought new attention to needed improvements to this process. More
Living toxic in America, part 1
Can you name a prescription drug that makes you healthy? What would it be? Over 66% of the US population takes prescription medication regularly. The elderly are in worse shape. As a group, 40% of them take five or more prescriptions, and nearly 10% take ten or more prescription drugs daily, according to a 2020 report from the nonpartisan think tank Lown Institute. More
Some cancer centers don’t follow evidence-based guidelines for prostate screening
In America's cancer centers, where many patients go for specialized cancer treatment, prostate screening policies do not always align with evidence-based recommendations. More
How mental health apps can accelerate the psychiatric prescribing cascade
Mental health apps designed to improve access to care may be driving overdiagnosis and overmedication, a recent investigation finds. More
Kansas City hospital care ranked 3rd most segregated, St. Louis ranks 2nd: report
In St. Louis and Kansas City, the vast majority of their hospitals land at the extremes of our inclusivity scale,” said Vikas Saini. “Some are super over-serving, if you will, black and Hispanic and poor populations, and others are really under-serving, and there are not many that are kind of in the middle.” Saini said in order to have fair, quality and equitable health care for everybody, we have to change the way we organize and pay for hospital care. “It can’t be this kind of market competition, revenue-seeking model,” he said. Saini said he dreams of a health care system where hospitals are given a budget to care for an entire community, rather than on a patient-by-patient basis. More
Lown Institute: Hospitals across 15 major cities deliver high racially segregated care
A new report found that hospitals in 15 large U.S. cities — led by Detroit and St. Louis — were highly segregated, but care for COVID-19 was more equitable. “Hospitals deserve praise for stepping up to the plate and being more inclusive during COVID, but we need them to be more inclusive all the time,” said Saini in a statement. More