To remain competitive in 2026 and beyond, healthcare leaders must improve performance, embrace technology and rethink traditional care models, according to a Jan. 12 report from McKinsey.
Here are five key takeaways for hospital leaders:
1. Healthcare EBITDA as a percentage of national health expenditures fell from 11.2% in 2019 to 8.9% in 2024 and is projected to dip to 8.7% in 2027.
2. Providers, along with payers, have absorbed much of the decline so far and are expected to remain under pressure in the near future. For hospitals, that includes rising levels of uncompensated care and reimbursement challenges tied to coverage shifts and policy changes.
3. Non-acute care continues to be the strongest growth area, driven by post-acute and outpatient services such as home health, hospice and ASCs. Other outpatient settings, including diagnostic imaging centers and dialysis clinics, are expected to see comparatively slower growth.
4. Recent EBITDA margin improvements have been supported by higher utilization, modest rate increases and easing inflation. Growth has been strongest in pre-acute settings — such as ASCs and urgent care centers, driven by sites-of-care shifts — and well as in post-acute segments that include home health and hospice amid an aging population.
5. General acute hospital EBITDA margins are projected to rise from 6.8% in 2024 to 7.6% in 2029, supported by reimbursement increases and cost-management efforts. However, hospitals are expected to face renewed headwinds through 2027 from factors including tariffs, subsidy expirations and federal policy changes.
The post McKinsey’s 2026 healthcare predictions: 5 takeaways for hospital leaders appeared first on Becker's Hospital Review | Healthcare News & Analysis.
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