Safety Net Hospitals

America’s Essential Hospitals suggests using the definition of “Essential Hospitals” in place of the term “safety net hospital.”

Essential Hospitals fill a safety-net role by caring for the uninsured, for low-income people, and for others who face economic and social hardships. In these hospitals, Medicaid and uninsured patients account for nearly half of all inpatient discharges and outpatient visits. Essential Hospitals also provide services that benefit everyone in the community, regardless of social or economic status.

Essential Hospitals:

• provide specialized, lifesaving services, such as level I trauma and neonatal intensive care, emergency psychiatric services, and burn treatment;
• train the next generation of health care professionals to ensure the community’s supply of doctors, nurses, and other caregivers meets demand;
• offer comprehensive, coordinated care across large ambulatory networks to bring services to where patients live and work; and
• protect public health by going outside their walls to improve population health and to prepare for and respond to natural disasters and other crises.

This Jargon Buster was contributed by America’s Essential Hospitals, the trade association for 325 essential hospitals across the United States. The group supports members with policy development, research and education.