Nonprofit or For-Profit Hospitals. Even though the quality of care varies widely within each of these categories, knowing who owns the hospital may give you some insight into other questions to ask. A voluntary hospital is a nonprofit community facility operating under religious or other voluntary auspices. Ultimate responsibility for all that takes place at the hospital rests with its board of trustees, generally selected from the community's business and professional people, who serve without pay. To manage the hospital, the trustees appoint a paid administrator.
Proprietary hospitals are commercial establishments.
They are profit-making institutions. Of course, working for profit does not necessarily make a hospital bad, any more than being nonprofit ensures quality care. Proprietary hospitals are owned by corporations or, less often, by individuals such as doctors who practice at the hospital. Hospital corporations usually own a chain of institutions located in several states, and they often own nursing homes or other types of health care facilities as well. Also, they may not measure up to other hospitals in terms of comfortable accommodations and the availability of private rooms.