Economic Analysis of Hamilton County's Health Care Cost Savings Attributable to Drake Center

Prepared for: 
Drake Center, Inc.
  • The cost of providing care at Drake Center is less than the cost of
    providing equivalent care at other hospitals in the area.
  • After adjusting for the type of patient and care provided, we estimate that
    Drake can provide care for less than an appropriate mix of alternative
    hospitals or skilled nursing facilities.
  • If all of Drake’s patients were provided care at alternative hospitals or
    skilled nursing facilities, county residents receiving care would pay $38.4
    million more per year than if they received the care at Drake. Most of
    these costs eventually would be paid by current Hamilton county residents
    who have health insurance.
  • This incremental cost of care by alternative facilities is more than the
    $19.8 million annual cost of Drake’s levy request.
  • If Drake would cease to exist, more hospitals and skilled nursing facilities
    would, in the long term, provide the services that Drake currently provides,
    but they may not be able to capture the efficiencies that Drake has
    developed over the years. Therefore, health care costs would likely be
    higher.