St. Mary’s Health Care System generated more than $355.6 million in revenue for the local and state economy in 2012, the latest year for which data is available, according to a recent report by the Georgia Hospital Association (GHA), the state’s largest hospital trade association. 

The report found that, during the same time period, St. Mary’s provided approximately $10.3 million in uncompensated care while sustaining 2,445 full-time jobs throughout Northeast Georgia and the rest of the state.  Jobs provided directly by St. Mary’s combined with those generated by the system’s economic impact generated more than $141 million in household earnings.

The GHA report, based on the most recent data available from the Georgia Department of Community Health, also revealed that St. Mary’s had direct expenditures of more than $155.6 million in 2012.  When combined with the economic multiplier developed by the United States Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Economic Analysis, the total economic impact of those expenditures was more than $355.6 million, GHA reports. 

The output multiplier considers the “ripple effect” of direct hospital expenditures on other sectors of the economy, such as medical supplies, durable medical equipment and pharmaceuticals.  Economic multipliers are used to model the resulting impact of a change in one industry on the “circular flow” of spending within an economy as a whole. 

“This report highlights the enormous positive impact St. Mary’s has on the economic well-being of the communities we serve,” said Don McKenna, St. Mary’s President and CEO. “We are driven by our mission and core values to provide compassionate, high quality care to all who need our services.  Our heartfelt thanks go out to our community for their support of St. Mary’s and our healing ministry.” 

According to GHA, St. Mary’s Hospital in Athens generated a total economic impact of more than $330.2 million on $144.5 million in total direct expenditures. The hospital supported 2,189 full-time jobs and generated $128.2 million in total household earnings. St. Mary’s Hospital provided more than $8.5 million in community benefits, including charity and uncompensated care. 

In addition, GHA reports that St. Mary’s Good Samaritan Hospital in Greensboro – which became part of St. Mary’s Health Care System in January 2012 – generated a total economic impact of nearly $25.4 million on $11.1 million in direct expenditures, supporting 255 full-time jobs and generating household earnings of $12.8 million. These figures do not include the economic impact of the multi-million dollar project to build a new, replacement hospital, which began in August 2012.

Statewide, GHA said Georgia hospitals generated nearly $40 billion for the state’s economy, provided more than $1.6 billion in uncompensated and charity care, and supported more than 287,000 full time jobs.