U.S. hospitals and health systems continued a rocky start to 2026 in February, facing ongoing financial headwinds as persistent expense growth and softer patient demand limited performance gains, according to new data from Strata Decision Technology.

CHICAGO, IL — April 21, 2026 — Two-thirds of U.S. healthcare finance leaders cite government funding uncertainty and Medicaid cuts as their top concern this year, according to Strata Decision Technology’s newly released 2026 Healthcare Financial Outlook Report. The finding reflects growing policy-driven risk at a time when organizations are working to stabilize margins and sustain recent performance gains.

U.S. hospitals and health systems continued a rocky start to 2026 in February, facing ongoing financial headwinds as persistent expense growth and softer patient demand limited performance gains, according to new data from Strata Decision Technology.

CHICAGO — March 31, 2026—Strata Decision Technology today announced the launch of Predictive Analytics, a new solution that helps health systems forecast financial performance and identify risk and opportunity early, so leaders can act with greater confidence.

Health system operating margins dipped into the red to start the new year, decreasing to negative 0.6% as month-over-month revenue decreases outpaced expense declines, according to new data from Strata Decision Technology’s latest Strata Performance Trends report.

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