MetroHealth lost $2.7M last year, expects $10M surplus in ’12

Public safety net hospital MetroHealth System lost $2.7 million last year, but hospitals officials are feeling optimistic about 2012 and are predicting a $10 million surplus.

Recent trends have MetroHealth leaders feeling confident as they look toward the rest of this year: rising patient volume, a reduction in staffing expenses and an increase in outpatient services, The Plain Dealer reported.

Even though Metro’s 2011 loss of $2.7 million was greater than the $1.1 million loss that had been predicted earlier, officials pronounced themselves “positively joyful” about the year’s financial results.

Metro actually made money on operations ($3.3 million), but the net loss was due to charity care and debt financing costs.

Last August, MetroHealth officials warned of an anticipated $6 million operating loss for 2011. The hospital cut about 450 jobs last year to take a bite out of the loss.

The health system is in the midst of a search for a new CEO after current chief Mark Moran last month announced his intention to step down.

Moran is widely credited with helping turn MetroHealth’s financial situation around, but his tenure has also been marked by controversy over no-bid consulting contracts and generous pay packages to departing executives.