A community not-for-profit hospital is a nonfederal short-stay
hospital whose services are available to the general public, whereas
an academic medical center (AMC) is a teaching hospital that
primarily trains physicians and has more specialized care for complex
conditions (Singh & Shi, 2015). Because a community medical
hospital provides services to the general public, its patient population
has a higher share of privately insured individuals and is greater in
number due to its broad healthcare services (The George
Washington University [GWU], 2021). The higher number of
privately insured patient population implies that community hospitals
gain revenue through the provision of services to this population.
Due to their charitable status, not-for-profit hospitals are exempt
from most federal and state taxes but are not exempt from other
taxes, like Social Security and Medicare taxes (Indiana Hospital
Association, n.d.). As a result, the excess revenue is typically
reinvested back into the hospital for improvement of operations
through new programs or needed staff hiring.
On the other hand, AMCs have active collaboration with a university,
medical school, or healthcare system, have substantial teaching and
research mission, and deliver specialized care for a multitude of
complex conditions (Singh & Shi, 2015). Additionally, AMCs deliver
disproportionate care for certain populations, such as Medicare and
Medicaid patients and hospital transfer patients with complex needs
(GWU, 2021). Based on these core traits of this healthcare system, it
