AU Health is good medicine for Georgia’s economy. The health system associated with Augusta University injected a combined $1.6 billion in economic impact through the not-for-profit AU Medical Center and Roosevelt Warm Springs Rehabilitation and Specialty Hospitals, according to the latest data from the Georgia Hospital Association.

AU Health had direct expenditures of nearly $700 million, according to the GHA report. When that number is combined with an economic multiplier developed by the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Economic Analysis, the total economic impact of the health system was $1,604,271,519 for 2017. This output multiplier considers the ripple effect of direct hospital expenditures on other sectors of the economy.

“Our key priorities are to manage the health care needs of our patients and families with high quality, safety and service,” said Lee Ann Liska, CEO of AU Medical Center and executive vice president of Clinical Affairs for Augusta University. “By doing this, we continually add to the economic standing of our region by providing market-driven compensation to our employees and by purchasing goods and services needed for delivery of our state-of-the-art care.”

AU Health provided more than $53 million in uncompensated care, according to the GHA report, while sustaining a combined 10,889 full-time jobs in Augusta and throughout the state.

“The GHA report demonstrates the vital significance of hospitals to the state and local economy,” Liska said.