News Releases

February, 2003
West Georgia Medical Center contributes $145.2 million to the local economy

West Georgia Medical Center contributed $145.2 million to the local economy in 2001, according to a report recently released by the Georgia Hospital Association. The document reports figures only for hospitals throughout Georgia and does not incorporate figures for other West Georgia Health System divisions including Florence Hand Home, Twin Fountains Home, West Georgia Home Care, West Georgia Dialysis, West Georgia Hospice and WGHS’ outpatient services.

During the same year, Georgia hospitals contributed more than $29.3 billion to the state’s economy and helped sustain 294,907 full-time jobs.

The GHA report revealed West Georgia Medical Center’s direct expenditure was $48.4 million in 2001. For all Georgia hospitals, the figure was $9.7 billion. However, when combined with an output multiplier developed by the United States Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Economic Analysis, the total economic impact generated by West Georgia Medical Center was $108.4 million. This output multiplier considers the “ripple” effect of direct hospital expenditures on other sectors of the economy, such as medical suppliers, durable medical equipment, and pharmaceuticals. Economic multipliers are used to model the resulting impact of a change in autonomous spending in one industry on the “circular flow” of spending within an economy as a whole.

The GHA report measured the effect of a household earnings multiplier which adds $36.8 million to the local economy through West Georgia Medical Center. As a whole, the Georgia hospital industry had a $7.4 billion impact in household earnings to the state’s economy. The household earnings multiplier measures the increased economic contributions from households employed directly or indirectly by hospitals through daily living expenditures.

“We are very proud that West Georgia Medical Center has such a tremendous impact on the local economy,” said WGHS President/CEO Jerry Fulks. “We are pleased to play a key role in the economic viability of our area and improve the lives of many citizens in our community.”

However, Fulks cited the need for increased federal, state, and local financial support of hospitals and health systems. “In 2001, West Georgia Medical Center provided $3.2 million in uncompensated care, which includes indigent, charity, free care and bad debt,” he said.

West Georgia Medical Center employs 1,390 people and has a payroll of $41.7 million. Statewide, hospitals and health systems directly employ more than 136,000 people and have a payroll that exceeds $3 billion annually. Indirectly, approximately 290,000 full-time jobs are sustained through Georgia hospitals from ancillary health services that contract with or provide services to these facilities, such as accountants, food suppliers, and medical equipment suppliers.

“In many communities, hospitals are the largest employers and most significant creators and sustainers of jobs and income,” says GHA President Joseph A. Parker. “In addition, hospitals often serve as an integral part of the overall package used to attract industry to the community and the foundation which supports a wide variety of other health care services, including physician practices, long-term care providers, home health agencies, rehabilitation providers, mental health services, and hospital services.”

With more than 60 percent of Georgia’s acute care hospitals currently losing money in providing patient care, Parker called for increased support for Georgia’s local hospitals.

“If health care policies do not support indigent care, if purchasers such as Medicaid, Medicare and managed care organizations continue to reduce payments, and if local communities do not financially support services provided to residents, then some hospitals may be forced to shut their doors,” Parker said. “If that happens, the financial viability of many communities may be jeopardized along with their ability to attract business and industry.”