The cost of salaries and benefits continued to accelerate for many providers across the healthcare sector as they struggled to attract and hire enough staff to care for patients amid the resurgence of COVID-19.
Spending on salaries and benefits in 2021 increased more than 10% compared with a year earlier as the nonprofit company faced higher wages, overtime costs and increased fees paid to agencies that provide staffing.
Staffing agencies have come under fire for charging high prices for providing traveling nurses to hospitals at a time when most are in great need. The American Hospital Association accused them of “exploiting” the nursing shortage and previously called on the White House to investigate the “exorbitant” rates.
