Company: UHS
Filing Date: 2025-02-26
Form Type: 10-K
Source: 0000950170-25-027785
Chunk: 95

Company: UNIVERSAL HEALTH SERVICES INC
Filing Date: 2025-02-26
Form: 10-K
Item: Item 1B
Chunk 95
---
 facilities, particularly within our behavioral health care segment, there have been occasions when we were unable to fill all vacant positions and, consequently, we were required to limit patient volumes. We have also experienced general inflationary cost increases related to certain of our other operating expenses. Many of these factors, which had a material unfavorable impact on our results of operations in prior years, have moderated more recently. However, we cannot predict future inflationary increases, which if significant, could have a material unfavorable impact on our future results of operations.  We have experienced inflationary pressures, primarily in personnel costs, although those pressures have moderated more recently. The extent of any future impacts from inflation on our business and our results of operations will be dependent upon how long the elevated inflation levels persist and the extent to which the rate of inflation further increases, if at all, neither of which we are able to predict. If elevated levels of inflation were to persist or if the rate of inflation were to accelerate, our expenses could increase faster than anticipated and we may utilize our capital resources sooner than expected. Further, given the complexities of the reimbursement landscape in which we operate, our ability to pass on increased costs associated with providing healthcare to Medicare and Medicaid patients is limited due to various federal, state and local laws, which in certain circumstances, limit our ability to increase prices;

•in our acute care segment, we have experienced a significant increase in hospital based physician related expenses, especially in the areas of emergency room care and anesthesiology. We have implemented various initiatives to mitigate the increased expense, to the degree possible, which has moderated the rate of increase.  However, significant increases in these physician related expenses could have a material unfavorable impact on our future results of operations;

•the increase in interest rates during the past few years has increased our interest expense significantly thereby reducing our free cash flow.  As such, although interest rates have moderated more recently, the effects of increased borrowing rates have adversely impacted our results of operations, financial condition and cash flows. We cannot predict future changes to interest rates, however, significant increases in our borrowing rates could have a material unfavorable impact on our future results of operations and our ability to access the capital markets on favorable terms;

•President Biden signed into law fiscal year 2025 appropriations to federal agencies for continuing projects and activities through March 14, 2025. We cannot predict whether or not there will be future legislation averting a federal government shutdown, however, our operating cash flows and results of operations could be materially unfavorably impacted by a federal government