HCA Q2 profit surges as patients return to hospitals

The first major hospital chain to post second-quarter results surprised Wall Street on Tuesday with how much it has grown since a rapidly spreading pandemic curtailed surgeries and other care last year

The first major hospital chain to post second-quarter results surprised Wall Street on Tuesday with how much it has grown since a rapidly spreading pandemic curtailed surgeries and other care last year. HCA Healthcare said Tuesday that admissions to its hospitals soared while COVID-19 related care fell in the three-month window that ended June 30. That contributed to better-than-expected earnings in the quarter and a raised forecast for 2021. “With the effects of the pandemic moderating ... we experienced a strong rebound in demand for services,” CEO Sam Hazen said. That rebound happened largely before COVID-19 cases started climbing around the country over the past few weeks, drawing concern from federal officials and epidemiologists. The seven-day rolling average for daily new cases has nearly tripled over the past two weeks to 34,730 as of Monday, according to Johns Hopkins University.