A 2011 Community Benefit Report released by the Minnesota Hospital Association shows that the state’s hospitals are “not only carrying their missions to care for the sick and injured, but they are also constantly demonstrating a spirit of caring that goes far beyond the hospitals’ walls.”

The 2011 report reflects 2010 financial information — the most recent data available — self-reported by Minnesota hospitals and health care systems and supplemented with data reported to the Minnesota Department of Health.

For the fifth consecutive year, the report quantifies the contributions that hospitals make to their communities each and every day, according to a news release.

Rainy Lake Medical Center hospital campus, is no different.

“We exist to take care of our community, so we provide health care to our community,” said Stephen Erixon, interim chief executive officer of Rainy Lake Medical Center.

Across the state, hospitals’ community contributions in 2010 totaled more than $3.4 billion, according to the report.

The category of uncompensated care alone reached $496.5 million, according to the report. Such uncompensated care for Region 2, which includes RLMC, reached $17.5 million in charity care and another $153.2 million worth of care that hospitals had to “write off” for patients who couldn’t pay. Without such programs and initiatives, the state's ability to keep the disadvantaged from falling through the cracks would be greatly diminished, according to the association.

Erixon said it is RLMC’s legal and moral obligation to take care of the International Falls area community.

“Our employees live in the same community as our patients,” he said. “We go to church with them and we play hockey with them. We are here to take care of them.”

Erixon said it is no secret that there are people in the community who are unable to pay for their health care. And while uncompensated care hurts RLMC, just as it does every hospital, he said RLMC will do what it can to accommodate its patients.

“Very few people pay the actual price that is on their bill,” Erixon said. “Everybody gets a discount. But there are people who come in and it costs us money to provide them care.”

The 2011 report echoed Erixon’s comments by stating despite economic challenges that are putting greater pressure on health care providers, Minnesota hospitals and health systems continue to face those challenges with a spirit of caring and a commitment to improving Minnesotans’ health.

“In community service, (RLMC) provided close to $35,000 in 2010 through things like educational programs and special classes,” Erixon said.

Erixon added that RLMC spent $144,000 in charity care — services provided to people who were determined unable to pay their bills; $705,000 in bad debt services — people who expressed a willingness to pay for their care, but other factors prevented it; and $370,000 in provider taxes.

“The hospital does have $24 million to $25 million in total revenue,” Erixon said. “We are very pleased to be here to take care of our community.”

2011 Community Benefit Report highlights:

• Charity care experienced a double digit increase from 2009 to 2010.

• Uncompensated care as a whole totaled $496.5 million in 2010, an increase of about 4 percent from the previous year.

• Government underfunding for caring for Medicare and Medicaid patients accounted for nearly 7 percent of Minnesota hospitals’ total operating expenses.

In Region 2, or the northeast region, community contributions totaled:

• Charity care— $ 17.5 million

• Medicaid (costs in excess of payments + surcharge)— $ 68.2 million.

Other community benefit programs and activities — $ 67.4 million.

• Total cost of community benefits (as defined by the IRS) — $153.2 million.

• Percent of total operating expenses — 7 percent.

• Community building — $481,291.

• Costs in excess of Medicare payments — $ 135.1 million

• Other care provided without compensation (bad debt) — $ 37.1 million.

• Total value of community contributions — $ 326 million.