In addition to enhancing the health and well-being of the communities it serves, Phoebe Putney Health System (PPHS) continues to have a positive economic impact. In 2017, PPHS generated more than $1.27 billion in revenue for the local and state economy according to a recently-released report by the Georgia Hospital Association (GHA), the state’s largest hospital trade association. During the same period, the health system supported 8,132 full-time jobs in addition to the more than 4,300 people employed by Phoebe.
 
“Our top priority every day at Phoebe is to offer outstanding care and service to every patient we have the privilege of serving.  We are proud that we offer the region’s most comprehensive, quality healthcare services.  We are also proud that we are the region’s largest employer.  Phoebe is southwest Georgia’s most vital economic engine and will continue to be so,” said Scott Steiner, President & Chief Executive Officer, Phoebe Putney Health System.
 
Phoebe also had direct expenditures of more than $546 million in 2017. When combined with the economic multiplier developed by the United States Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Economic Analysis, the total economic impact of those expenditures was more than $1.27 billion.
 
This output multiplier considers the “ripple” effect of direct hospital expenditures on other sectors of the economy, such as medical supplies, durable medical equipment and pharmaceuticals. Economic multipliers are used to model the resulting impact of a change in one industry on the “circular flow” of spending within an economy as a whole.
 
Phoebe is a major contributor to the area’s economic strength and keeping families healthy by providing needed healthcare services. However, like the rest of the Georgia hospital community, Phoebe is concerned about economic challenges that affect the hospital’s ability to deliver timely and efficient care. A fast-growing uninsured population and inadequate payments from government insurance programs like Medicare and Medicaid have made it increasingly difficult to meet the community’s health care needs. In 2017, 44 percent of all hospitals in Georgia operated with negative total margins.
 
“For 108 years, Phoebe has served all those in need of healthcare, regardless of their ability to pay.  Despite growing challenges that continue to put pressure on community hospitals like Phoebe, we will continue that proud tradition.  Phoebe will also maintain our commitment to expanding access to quality primary and specialty care through well-planned, responsible growth that benefits the people of southwest Georgia,” Steiner said.   
 
The PPHS hospitals included in the report are Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital, Phoebe Sumter Medical Center and Phoebe Worth Medical Center. Below is the economic impact each of the hospitals generated in 2017 according to GHA:
 
·         Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital, located in Albany, generated a total economic impact of more than $1.1 billion on $483 million in direct expenditures. The hospital supported 6,947 full-time jobs in the Dougherty County area and across the state.

·         Phoebe Sumter Medical Center in Americus generated a total economic impact of more than $129 million on $55 million in direct expenditures. The hospital supported 902 full-time jobs in Sumter County and across the state.

·         Phoebe Worth Medical Center in Sylvester generated a total economic impact of $17.8 million on $7 million in direct expenditures. The hospital supported 284 full-time jobs in Worth County area and across the state.
 
Statewide, GHA said Georgia hospitals in 2017 generated over $54 billion for the state’s economy and created more than 150,000 full time jobs.