Private equity ownership of hospitals in the United States is linked to declining patient care, rising health complications, and the stripping of community healthcare resources, according to a new report by former FDA Associate Commissioner Peter Pitts.
The report, titled “Barbarians at the Hospital Gates: Private Equity and its Impact on Patient Care,” was published by the Center for Medicine in the Public Interest. It highlights how private equity (PE) investment—now totaling over $1 trillion—has come to dominate nearly 20% of all for-profit hospitals across the U.S.
“Studies show patient experience worsens after a hospital is acquired by PE, as such acquisitions create incentives to pursue short-term returns through aggressive cost-cutting,” the report states.
One alarming trend outlined in the report is how PE firms often strip hospitals of vital assets. Within two years of a PE acquisition, hospitals lost an average of nearly 25% of their real estate, buildings, and equipment—equivalent to $28 million per hospital.
In Massachusetts, taxpayers were forced to bail out Steward Healthcare with $72 million after it declared bankruptcy, even as its backer, Apollo Global Management, reportedly made off with about $325 million.
Patient outcomes are also affected. A Journal of the American Medical Association study cited in the report found sharp increases in hospital-acquired infections and falls after PE takeovers. Central-line bloodstream infections rose 38%, surgical-site infections doubled, and falls increased by 27%.
Meanwhile, patient satisfaction plummeted. A 2025 study using federal data showed overall hospital ratings dropped by more than 5 percentage points within three years post-acquisition.
Most strikingly, Medicare patients undergoing emergency surgeries at PE-owned hospitals had a 42% higher 30-day mortality rate compared to those treated at non-PE facilities.
Pitts concluded: “Greed is not always good. Protecting patients requires stronger oversight, transparency, and a realignment of financial goals with clinical care.”
