The Health Care Industry of Texas

Texas healthcare system is one of the most recognized in the United States and is a significant player in the country’s healthcare system. It has some prominent healthcare facilities, such as MD Anderson Cancer Center and Baylor College of Medicine.

These health care centers are the hub for innovative and rare surgeries worldwide. The healthcare industry in the Dallas-Ft. Worth area generates more than $52 billion in revenue yearly, representing about 15 percent of the region’s total economic activity. It is the most convincing reason for several new and old health-related companies to expand their franchises in this state. [1]

About Texas Health Care Industry

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According to the US Census data, the population in Texas amounts to about 28 million residents. It makes Texas the second-largest US state in population and annual population growth. [2]

The same data from the US Census predicts that this population growth trend is here to stay. Given the state’s large population and population growth trends, expansion of hospitals and the inauguration of new medical facilities is mandatory.  

The 2012 census data highlights that there were approximately about 54,991 healthcare establishments in Texas [3]. During the following five years, the number of such establishments rose to 61,342, recording an 11.5% increase. In 2017, the Texas government spent $15.8 billion on constructing various medical facilities, including hospitals, hospice centers, emergency units, etc. [4]

One of the best things to come out of constructing several new medical facilities and loads of investment in the Texas health care industry is more job opportunities and increased employment. It implies that the state will require more qualified medical professionals in various fields so that the healthcare industry can run excellently. 

Healthcare in Houston/Gulf Coast 

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Texas Medical Center (TMC) in Houston is the largest medical center in the world. It is like a vast city encompassing big campuses, world-class hospital facilities, research and innovation, and cross-institutional collaboration. TMC is justifiably called a city, as it houses the following: [5]

  • MD. Anderson Cancer Center 
  • Baylor College of Medicine 
  • Houston Methodist Hospital 
  • St. Luke’s Health Center 
  • Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center 
  • The Texas Heart Institute 
  • University of Texas Health Sciences Center 
  • Several Hotels for the patients’ attendees to stay comfortably in 

TMS is home to the biggest children’s hospital globally and offers the best cancer treatment facilities. According to the statistics by TMC, this healthcare facility treats about 10 million patients every year and performs over 180,000 surgeries, of which over 13,600 are heart surgeries. [6]

Texas Medical Center Houston is equipped with state-of-the-art technology and innovative medical treatment options, which is why TMC holds a record of 750,000 ER visits annually. Spanning over 50 million square feet, this healthcare facility is still developing and making giant leaps in establishing new medical and research centers. Several construction projects in the pipeline for TMC are worth $3 billion.

This medical facility in Houston, Texas, employs over 106,000 people, ranging from highly qualified surgeons and doctors to a plethora of educated and experienced medical and nursing staff.

Texas Medical Center is the Hub of Innovation 

In 2014, TMC took on a new and famous project called the TMC Accelerator (TMCX), which aimed at serving as the largest incubator for groundbreaking medical research and entrepreneurship in the field. TMCX began its operations in 9,000 square meters and expanded in 2015 as the TMCX+ was initiated to accommodate more bright minds. 

Health Care in North Texas 

In North Texas, the most prominent and critical player in the state’s health care industry is the Southwestern Medical District (SMD) in Dallas, a powerful metropolitan hub. It is a vastly sprawling medical facility spanning a massive 158-acre land.

The SMD is the hot seat for groundbreaking biomedical research and encompasses the University Hospital-St. Paul, Children’s Medical Center Dallas, University Hospital-Zale Lipshy, and Parkland Health and Hospital System. 

According to Forbes, UT Southwestern Medical Center is one of the top health care employers for diversity in the US [7]. In 2017, a Radiation Oncology building was developed in the Clements University Hospital under UT Southwestern Cancer Programs. 

This medical facility in Texas believes in transparency for patients and their families at every step. Thus, it offers a quality tracking program in which the performance of the professionals is tracked, and patients’ feedback is necessary to improve future medical innovations. UT Southwestern also takes pride in bringing the influenza vaccination rates close to 100%, outperforming the national vaccination average for influenza. [8]

Health Care in Central Texas 

UT Health San Antonio is among the leading health centers with about a $350 million annual medical research portfolio. Statistics reveal that UT San Antonio is the city’s key driver of approximately $42.4 billion worth of health and biosciences sector. 

UT San Antonio houses about five schools and a vastly diverse workforce of over 7,200 employees. Its annual operating budget amounts to over $1 billion, which caters to more than 2 million patients visiting the healthcare facility annually. [9]

Healthcare in East Texas

The Medical Center of the Americas (MCA) in East Texas spans a massive 178-hectare campus in El Paso. It is managed by the MCA Foundation and anchored by Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center (TTUHSC), University of El Paso, and Children’s Hospital El Paso.

The year 2021 marked ten glorious years of the Impact Fund Agreement of the MCA with the City of El Paso. During these years, the MCA has brought in about $30 million from the impact fund and dedicated it to the medical community of El Paso. 

Healthcare Workers in Texas 

Texas has the highest employment rates in the healthcare industry, as the top 25 employers in the state are hospitals and medical research facilities. A 2015 report by BLS reveals that Texas’s education and healthcare industry employed over 1.675 million people. [10]

In San Antonio alone, every one of six medical residents is employed in the healthcare industry, which is a very impressive statistic. It is primarily due to the state’s massive developments in the health sectors as new care facilities and units require more nurses, medical managers, administrative staff, technicians, etc. 

About Texas’ Healthcare Revenue 

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According to the official statistics from the 2012 US Census data, the annual revenue of the Texas healthcare industry was about $145 billion. It considerably increased (27.4%) from the previous 2007 US Census data. 

Also, the number of employees in the Texas health sector rose 15.3% from 2007 to 2012, reaching up to 1,345,664 employees in the state’s healthcare system. The Dallas-Fort Worth healthcare industry is valued at $52 billion yearly, accounting for 15% of the total regional economic growth. The net income of only DFW hospitals amounts to $2.597 billion (2015). [11] [12]

In San Antonio, the healthcare and bioscience industry reported a staggering $37 billion impact on the city’s economy in 2015. Bioscience is the backbone of the healthcare industry in Texas. The famous German biotech company, Cytocentrics, chose San Antonio as its headquarters. [13]

Houston is also one of the leading financial drivers of the Texas healthcare industry and recorded a massive economic impact of $20 billion at the regional level [14]. The Texas Medical Center employs over a million healthcare workers, making up 7% of the state’s workforce.

Some Findings from the Texas Market Review

  • This 2020 review reveals that medical loss ratios in the state’s healthcare industry decreased significantly between 2019 and 2020. This trend, subsequently, led to more significant profit margins till September 2020. [15]
  • Health Management Organization, Blue Texas, reported an increase in net income to $1.078 billion in 2020. 
  • Reports show that profitability for Houston hospitals (pre-tax income) increased by 45.6% in 2017 to a staggering $2.629 million in 2019. 
  • Dallas-Fort Worth also experienced a massive increase in its pre-tax net income in 2019. 
  • Two of the most extensive healthcare facilities in North, Baylor Scott and White’s Hospitals, recorded an average margin of 16.3% (pre-tax).
  • In comparison, there was no extraordinary growth in inpatient utilization projects during 2017 and 2019. Inpatient hospitalization only increased by 1.7%, specifically for Dallas-Fort Worth hospitals. 
  • The report reflects a high magnitude of advancements in broadening the geographic reach of the healthcare facilities, including investments in micro-hospitals, ambulatory surgery centers, urgent care clinics, free-standing emergency departments, etc. 
  • Between 2017 and 2019, the HCA Methodist system in San Antonio has established six free-standing emergency departments, while the Tenet Baptist has established eight of them. 
  • Enrollment in Medicaid HMOs declined in 2019. However, the enrollment rates shot up by 15% in the initial nine months of 2020. 
  • Medicare Advantage plan’s enrollment and profitability are also higher than the combined national average. There were about 1.756 million enrollments in Medicare Advantage plans in 2020. 
  • Centene is Texas’s biggest seller of individual plans, with about 338,000 active enrollments. HMO Blue Texas closely follows it. Overall, enrollments in individual plans vastly increased by 1 million in 2020. 

The Powerful Healthcare System of Texas 

Healthcare is a complex industry that must adapt to changing needs and innovate further in the coming years. It is one of the top 10 industries in Texas

The Texas health care industry is the largest in the US, with billions of dollars in revenue. Although the industry is far from perfect, it is undeniable that the healthcare system of Texas has improved under the pressures of a competitive market.

References 

  1. https://academicpartnerships.uta.edu/articles/mba/healthcare-big-business-in-texas.aspx
  2. https://thedataweb.rm.census.gov/TheDataWeb_HotReport2/econsnapshot/2012/snapshot.hrml?STATE=45&COUNTY=ALL&x=65&y=8&IND=%3DCOMP%28C2%2FC3*1000%29&NAICS=62 
  3. https://www.dallasnews.com/business/health-care/2017/03/08/texas-15-8-billion-medical-construction-pipeline-is-second-in-the-nation-report-says/ 
  4. https://www.tmc.edu/about-tmc/ 
  5. https://www.visithoustontexas.com/about-houston/texas-medical-center/ 
  6. https://www.forbes.com/lists/best-employers-diversity/?sh=14a7a0856468 
  7. https://utswmed.org/why-utsw/quality-and-safety/?_ga=2.266358280.760880909.1654929809-2028327244.1654929809 
  8. https://uthscsa.edu/university/about-us 
  9. https://www.bls.gov/eag/eag.tx.htm 
  10. https://cdn.dallaschamber.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/14135802/DRC-Healthcare-final-full-v2.pdf 
  11. https://academicpartnerships.uta.edu/articles/mba/healthcare-big-business-in-texas.aspx 
  12. https://www.tpr.org/news/2016-11-17/sas-healthcare-and-bioscience-industry-tops-37-billion 
  13. https://www.coydavidson.com/houston/texas-medical-center-houston-healthcare-real-estate/ 
  14. https://www.researchandmarkets.com/reports/5304979/texas-health-market-review-2020