A large new study presented at the 2026 ATS International Conference shows that patients treated for COPD or pneumonia experience worse outcomes across several key measures if they are treated at a hospital acquired by a private equity firm.
Notably, patients with pneumonia were more likely to die during hospitalization at hospitals acquired by private equity than at other hospitals. At the same time, COPD patients are more likely to return within the first 30 days compared to patients at other hospitals.
This is the first study to show that private equity acquisitions are associated with worse outcomes for patients with these lung diseases.
Our findings increase concerns about the negative impact of private equity in healthcare and highlight the critical need for stronger regulation of these acquisitions to protect patients. ”
Stephen Mayne, MD, first author, pulmonologist at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and researcher at the Richard A. and Susan F. Smith Outcomes Research Center in Boston
The number of U.S. hospitals being acquired by private equity firms is rapidly increasing. Previous research has shown that when a hospital is acquired by a private equity firm, patients report a worse treatment experience and have higher rates of in-hospital adverse events such as falls and bloodstream infections. However, few studies have investigated how private equity acquisitions impact specific diseases such as COPD and pneumonia, the most common lung-related reasons for hospitalization.
For the study, researchers analyzed data on more than 146,900 cases of COPD and more than 194,900 cases of pneumonia encountered in private hospitals. They matched private equity hospitals with a control group of hospitals not owned by private equity firms and compared outcomes for patients admitted to the two groups of hospitals.
A 1 percentage point increase was seen in patients with COPD. Mortality rates for pneumonia patients increased by almost 1 percentage point.
“The increase in deaths among patients hospitalized with pneumonia is particularly worrying,” Dr. Mayne said. “A one percentage point increase may sound small, but it represents a significant change when you consider that the typical in-hospital mortality rate for patients with pneumonia is only 3 percent to 4 percent.”
Dr. Mayne pointed out that private equity firms are incentivized to generate quick profits, but that goal does not necessarily align with providing quality care.
sauce:
American Thoracic Society
