Sanford reinvests more than $1B to strengthen rural care

Contact:
Jon Berg
Sanford Health Media Relations
605-366-2432 / Jon.Berg@sanfordhealth.org

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. — Sanford Health reinvested more than $1 billion in 2024 to support patients, strengthen communities and expand access to healthcare across the rural communities it serves. The investments are detailed in Sanford Health’s annual Community Impact Report, which highlights how the nonprofit health system reinvests resources to improve community health and ensure access to care close to home.

As the nation’s largest rural nonprofit health system, Sanford Health serves communities where patients often face unique challenges, including provider shortages, longer travel distances for care and higher rates of chronic disease. Through investments in subsidized health services, uncompensated care, workforce development, medical research and community programs, Sanford Health works to address those challenges and improve health outcomes across the Upper Midwest.

“At Sanford Health, our commitment to the people we serve extends far beyond our clinics and hospitals,” said Bill Gassen, president and CEO of Sanford Health. “As a nonprofit health system, we reinvest in programs, services and partnerships that strengthen the health of our communities, support patients regardless of their financial circumstances and help ensure access to high-quality care for generations to come.”

“The release of this report comes at a particularly meaningful time as we honor the passing of our benefactor and namesake, Denny Sanford. Throughout his life, Denny was deeply committed to strengthening the health and wellbeing of the communities he cared about, and that legacy continues to inspire this work today,” added Gassen.

Highlights from the 2024 Community Impact Report include:

• $320.4 million invested in subsidized health services that help sustain essential healthcare programs in rural communities.
• $206.6 million in uncompensated care provided to patients regardless of their ability to pay.
• $302.4 million absorbed in Medicaid and Medicare underpayments, helping maintain access to care in communities where public reimbursement does not cover the full cost of services.
• $118.5 million invested in community health improvement services guided by local Community Health Needs Assessment priorities.
• $61.6 million invested in health professions education, including support for more than 400 residents and fellows training in a variety of specialties.
• $19.7 million invested in medical research, supporting nearly 1,100 active clinical trials that help connect rural patients to innovative treatments and therapies.

The report reflects the most recently available Form 990 data based on annual Federal filing deadlines and is organized around the IRS Form 990 Schedule H, which requires nonprofit health systems to demonstrate how their investments deliver community benefit and advance public health. Sanford Health’s report reflects investments across seven key categories, including uncompensated care, subsidized health services, community health improvement, workforce development, medical research and community-building activities.

For more information about Sanford Health, visit sanfordhealth.org.

 

About Sanford Health
Sanford Health, the largest rural health system in the United States, is dedicated to transforming the health care experience and providing access to world-class health care in America’s heartland. Headquartered in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, the organization has 55,000 employees and serves more than 2 million patients and nearly 415,000 health plan members across the upper Midwest including South Dakota, North Dakota, Minnesota, Wyoming, Iowa, Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. The integrated nonprofit health system includes a network of 58 hospitals, 289 clinic locations, 145 senior care communities, 4,500 physicians and advanced practice providers and 1,100 active clinical trials and studies. The organization’s transformational virtual care initiative brings patients closer to care with access to nearly 80 specialties. More than 400 residents and fellows are trained each year through graduate medical education with Sanford Health fully funding and supporting 29 of the 40 available programs. Sanford Health also includes 92 retail pharmacies, including Sanford and Lewis Drug pharmacies with locations in 6 states, and more than 300 pharmacists. Learn more about Sanford Health’s commitment to shaping the future of rural health care across the lifespan at sanfordhealth.org or Sanford Health News.