Cuộc họp công bố kết quả kinh doanh Q3 2026 của Pediatrix Medical Group (MD): Triển vọng EBITDA thu hẹp

Thông tin trọng tâm

• Pediatrix Medical Group công bố EBITDA điều chỉnh quý 3/2026 đạt khoảng 85 triệu USD và thu hẹp dự báo EBITDA điều chỉnh cả năm xuống còn 290 triệu - 300 triệu USD.
• Doanh thu hợp nhất tăng gần 2% so với cùng kỳ năm trước. Doanh thu của các cơ sở hợp nhất cùng kỳ tăng 0,6%, trong đó số lượng bệnh nhân và giá dịch vụ mỗi yếu tố đóng góp 0,3%.
• Giá dịch vụ của các cơ sở hợp nhất cùng kỳ hưởng lợi từ cơ cấu bên thanh toán thuận lợi, phí quản lý bệnh viện cao hơn và mức độ bệnh nặng của bệnh nhân gia tăng. Những đà tăng này bị bù trừ một phần bởi yếu tố bất lợi so sánh từ quản lý chu kỳ doanh thu ở mức hơn 100 điểm cơ bản một chút.
• Dòng tiền từ hoạt động kinh doanh đạt 118 triệu USD, so với 138 triệu USD của cùng kỳ năm trước. Tiền mặt cuối quý đạt tổng cộng 312 triệu USD, nợ thuần ở mức hơn 266 triệu USD một chút và tỷ lệ đòn bẩy ở mức dưới 1x.
• Pediatrix đã mua lại hơn 3 triệu cổ phiếu trong quý. Kể từ tháng 8/2025, công ty đã mua lại 10 triệu cổ phiếu với giá trung bình 23 USD, giảm số lượng cổ phiếu đang lưu hành xuống còn 78 triệu cổ phiếu.
• Ban lãnh đạo cho biết họ chưa ghi nhận tác động tiêu cực rõ ràng nào từ việc hết hạn trợ cấp ACA. Công ty cũng dự kiến mức độ ảnh hưởng hạn chế từ các thay đổi quy định IDR tiềm năng do thường có chưa đến 5% hoạt động kinh doanh nằm ngoài mạng lưới liên kết.

Dữ liệu tài chính chính

Kết quả kinh doanh và hoạt động

Sản lượng dịch vụ bệnh nhân của các cơ sở hợp nhất cùng kỳ tăng 0,3%. Tăng trưởng ở các dịch vụ y học sản nhi (MFM) bị bù trừ một phần bởi sự sụt giảm ở các dịch vụ sơ sinh khác, chủ yếu là hoạt động nhà trẻ sơ sinh. Số ngày điều trị NICU ổn định so với cùng kỳ năm trước.

Cơ cấu bên thanh toán đã cải thiện hơn 70 điểm cơ bản so với quý 3/2025 và giữ ở mức ổn định so với quý 2/2026. Ban lãnh đạo ước tính cơ cấu bên thanh toán đóng góp khoảng 40% vào đà tăng giá dịch vụ, phí quản lý bệnh viện khoảng 25% và mức độ bệnh nặng khoảng 15%.

Công ty cho biết hoạt động thu hồi nợ được cải thiện từ các kỳ trước đã tạo ra yếu tố bất lợi so sánh hơn 100 điểm cơ bản một chút trong định giá quý 3. Ban lãnh đạo đánh giá hiệu quả quản lý chu kỳ doanh thu là ổn định, đồng thời tiếp tục đẩy mạnh tự động hóa hơn nữa.

Chi phí lương, tiền công và phúc lợi ở cấp độ phòng khám tăng so với cùng kỳ năm trước, phản ánh chi phí lương cao hơn được bù trừ một phần bởi chi phí phúc lợi thấp hơn. Tốc độ tăng lương duy trì ở mức khoảng 3%, trong khi ban lãnh đạo mô tả lạm phát lương lâm sàng trong những năm gần đây là khoảng 3%-3,5%.

Chi phí quản lý doanh nghiệp tăng, chủ yếu do kết quả tài chính khả quan hơn làm tăng chi phí khen thưởng theo hiệu quả công việc. Chi phí công nghệ thấp hơn, bao gồm một số chi phí SaaS không còn ghi nhận trong báo cáo kết quả hoạt động kinh doanh, đã bù trừ một phần.

Pediatrix tiếp tục mở rộng các dịch vụ khám chữa bệnh từ xa và đánh giá một số cơ hội dịch vụ bác sĩ nội trú sản khoa chọn lọc. Công ty cũng đang xem xét các thương vụ thâu tóm lớn hơn bổ trợ cho các hoạt động hiện tại, với trọng tâm được nêu rõ là chăm sóc sức khỏe phụ nữ và trẻ em.

Dự báo từ Ban lãnh đạo

Ban lãnh đạo đã thu hẹp dự báo EBITDA điều chỉnh cả năm 2026 xuống 290 triệu - 300 triệu USD.

Công ty cho biết khoảng dự báo này cho phép sự biến động về sản lượng và giá dịch vụ. Ban lãnh đạo không ghi nhận bất kỳ khoản chi phí bất thường cụ thể nào nằm trong kỳ vọng quý 4.

Pediatrix không cung cấp triển vọng cho năm 2027. Ban lãnh đạo cho biết họ vẫn đang trong quá trình lập ngân sách và đang theo dõi cơ cấu bên thanh toán, các thay đổi về mã hóa thủ thuật y tế và các yếu tố hoạt động khác.

Rủi ro và các yếu tố cần theo dõi

• Ban lãnh đạo đề cập đến chi phí gia tăng trong toàn bộ hệ thống cung cấp dịch vụ y tế, mặc dù lạm phát tiền lương vẫn thấp hơn mức từ giữa đến cao của một chữ số (5%-9%) được ghi nhận vài năm trước.
• Công ty chưa thấy tác động tiêu cực rõ ràng nào từ việc hết hạn trợ cấp ACA, nhưng vẫn tiếp tục theo dõi cơ cấu bên thanh toán và các biến động liên quan đến việc đăng ký tham gia.
• Các quy định IDR theo Đạo luật Không có Bất ngờ (No Surprises Act) vẫn đang trong quá trình xem xét. Pediatrix dự kiến tác động hạn chế do phần lớn hoạt động nằm trong mạng lưới liên kết và thường chỉ có dưới 5% nằm ngoài mạng lưới.
• Các thay đổi về mã hóa ảnh hưởng đến dịch vụ bác sĩ nội trú sản khoa dự kiến diễn ra vào năm 2027, nhưng ban lãnh đạo cho biết các quy định cuối cùng và phản ứng của các đơn vị cung cấp dịch vụ vẫn chưa chắc chắn. Mảng kinh doanh này hiện chưa chiếm tỷ trọng yếu đối với Pediatrix.
• Áp lực tài chính của bệnh viện có thể khiến việc đàm phán phí quản lý trở nên khó khăn hơn. Ban lãnh đạo cho biết các khoản thanh toán phụ thuộc vào việc chứng minh Pediatrix có thể vận hành các khoa chăm sóc tích cực sơ sinh (NICU) hiệu quả và mang lại giá trị so với việc các bệnh viện tự trực tiếp vận hành các dịch vụ đó.

Tóm tắt phiên Hỏi & Đáp với chuyên gia phân tích

Tính bền vững của giá dịch vụ: Ban lãnh đạo kỳ vọng cơ cấu bên thanh toán thuận lợi, phí quản lý bệnh viện và mức độ bệnh nặng cao hơn sẽ tiếp tục đóng vai trò hỗ trợ, đồng thời thừa nhận rằng mỗi yếu tố đều có thể biến động. Lợi ích từ việc thu hồi nợ trước đó phần lớn đã đi vào trạng thái so sánh ổn định.

Triển vọng quý 4: Khi được hỏi về mức EBITDA ngụ ý trong dự báo cả năm, ban lãnh đạo cho biết khoảng dự báo chủ yếu giữ tính linh hoạt xung quanh biến động về sản lượng và giá dịch vụ chứ không phản ánh một yếu tố bất lợi cụ thể nào dự kiến xảy ra.

Phân bổ vốn: Pediatrix dự định tiếp tục nắm bắt cơ hội linh hoạt trong việc mua lại cổ phiếu. Mức đòn bẩy thấp cũng tạo dư địa cho các thương vụ thâu tóm lớn hơn, miễn là các mục tiêu nằm trong các lĩnh vực bổ trợ cho hoạt động chăm sóc sức khỏe phụ nữ và trẻ em của công ty.

Khoản thanh toán hỗ trợ từ bệnh viện: Ban lãnh đạo cho biết ít hơn đáng kể một nửa số cơ sở NICU của công ty nhận được hỗ trợ từ bệnh viện và tỷ lệ này không thay đổi đáng kể so với cùng kỳ năm trước. Họ không cung cấp con số chính xác hơn.

Thay đổi mã hóa năm 2027: Ban lãnh đạo từ chối nhận định tác động tiềm năng là tích cực hay tiêu cực trước khi các quy định được hoàn tất và phản ứng từ các cơ sở cung cấp dịch vụ sản khoa trở nên rõ ràng hơn.

Toàn văn biên bản cuộc họp công bố kết quả kinh doanh

Toàn văn cuộc gọi công bố kết quả kinh doanh

Phần trình bày của ban lãnh đạo

Operator

Hello, and thank you for standing by. At this time, I would like to welcome everyone to the Q3 2026 Pediatrix Medical Group, Inc. Earnings Conference Call. [Operator Instructions] I would now like to turn the conference over to David Haddock, General Counsel. You may begin.

David Haddock

Good morning. Certain statements and information during this conference call may be deemed to be forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Federal Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are based on assumptions and assessments made by Pediatrix's management in light of their experience and assessment of historical trends, current conditions, expected future developments and other factors they believe to be appropriate. Any forward-looking statements made during this call are made as of today, and Pediatrix undertakes no duty to update or revise any such statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Important factors that could cause actual results, developments and business decisions to differ materially from forward-looking statements are described in the company's filings with the SEC, including the sections entitled Risk Factors. In today's remarks by management, they will be focusing -- they will be discussing non-GAAP financial metrics. A reconciliation of these non-GAAP financial measures to the most comparable GAAP measures can be found in this morning's earnings press release in the company's quarterly and annual reports and on the Pediatrix website at www.pediatrix.com. With that, I will turn the call over to Mark Ordan, Chief Executive Officer of Pediatrix Medical Group.

Mark Ordan

Thank you, David, and good morning, everyone. Also with me today is Kasandra Rossi, our Chief Financial Officer. We are pleased to report a strong quarter with adjusted EBITDA of $85 million. Same unit revenue was positive with equal contributions from volume and pricing, even with pricing reflecting the lapping of the tailwinds we experienced from strong collection activity over the past several quarters. Our overall results for the quarter exceeded our expectations in spite of increasing costs in virtually all areas of providing great health care. We are narrowing the range of our full year 2026 outlook to $290 million to $300 million in adjusted EBITDA. In the quarter, we repurchased just over 3 million shares of our stock, bringing our total buyback since August of 2025 to 10 million shares and our shares outstanding to 78 million, down from 87 million at the end of the second quarter of 2025. The average price of the 10 million share buyback is $23. For several quarters, I've been asked why our numbers have not been adjusted because of the effect of the lapse of the ACA subsidies. Well, as our results continue to show, we have still seen no clear negative effect to date.

Turning from the quarter to what gives us increased confidence in our future are several highlights I'll share. Our annual meeting of all of our practice medical directors 2 weeks ago had basically one agenda item, care quality. It may seem anomalous for a public company to hold such a meeting and not discuss scheduling, expenses, et cetera. However, we believe our core is about care and quality, and that's what our 300 directors came to discuss. It was, of course, led by our clinical leadership team, and my contribution was to be proud to be among our extraordinary clinicians. I've recently reported that we take advantage of our strong financial condition to support internal growth and to be in a position to find larger potential value-add outside opportunities. We continue to work on expanding our telehealth services as well as select opportunities in the OB hospitalist field. On the latter, announced coding changes are scheduled to take effect in 2027, and we will see then how this area changes in response. Of course, it is not a material part of our business at this point, and we'll plan to report to you as we all learn more.

We also know, of course, that the No Surprises Act IDR rules are being reviewed, and we have read about alleged abuses of the process. Pediatrix submits claims that we believe are right down the middle of the spirit and letter of the process rules. And we do not have an outsider determine in their view what is a proper claim. We determine that ourselves. We do not expect the process to be a headwind for us since it is designed to balance fairly the interest of payers and acute care providers who follow the rules.

I'll close by returning to quality. Dr. Medel founded Pediatrix with a clear charge: take care of the patient. That is what our patients and our hospital partners expect of us. Whenever we can find ways to improve, we do. And we do this only because we have, by far, the nation's largest team of world-class clinicians in our sector of women's and children's health. I'll now turn to Kasandra.

Kasandra Rossi

Thanks, Mark, and good morning, everyone. Our consolidated revenue increased by just under 2%, driven by non-same unit activity, primarily recent acquisitions and same-unit growth of 60 basis points. Same-unit patient service volumes were up about 30 basis points, driven by MFM services, partially offset by declines in other neonatology services, primarily newborn nursery. NICU days were stable as compared to the prior year. Same unit pricing was also up by 30 points, driven by favorable payer mix, an increase in hospital admin fees and increased patient acuity primarily in neonatology.

As expected and as Mark stated, we've begun to lap the strong tailwind from improved collection activity, which is flowing through as a decrease in pricing this quarter. Payer mix improved by over 70 basis points as compared to the prior year third quarter and remained stable as compared to the second quarter of 2026. Practice level SW&B expenses increased year-over-year and on a same-unit basis reflected increases in salary expenses, partially offset by lower benefits expense. Salary growth has remained consistent with the ranges we have seen over the past couple of years in that 3% area. Our G&A expense increased year-over-year, primarily related to higher incentive-based compensation based on financial results, partially offset by lower technology-related expenses. D&A expense was up about $700,000 year-over-year, primarily reflecting CapEx at our existing units as well as CapEx and amortization of intangibles from recent acquisitions. Other nonoperating expenses were $200,000 for the third quarter compared to nonoperating income of $19.7 million for the prior year period. The prior year period reflected a net gain on divested businesses of $20.9 million. For the third quarter of '26, we also saw a decrease in interest expense from modestly lower interest rates and borrowings as compared to the prior year period.

Moving on to cash flow. We generated $118 million in operating cash flow in the third quarter compared to $138 million in the prior year, with the change driven by decreases in cash flow from accounts payable and accrued expenses and accounts receivable. Our leverage at 9/30 sits at just under 1x using the midpoint of our updated adjusted EBITDA outlook range for 2026 with cash of $312 million and net debt of just over $266 million. Our accounts receivable DSO at 9/30 of 42.5 days were unchanged from June 30 and March 31 and were down just over half a day year-over-year. I'll go ahead and turn the call back over to Mark.

Mark Ordan

Great. Thank you, Kasandra. And now we will take any questions that you have.

Operator

And your first question comes from the line of Andrew Ryan Daniels with William Blair.

Phần hỏi đáp

Matthew Mardula

This is Matthew Mardula on for Ryan. So, I want to start with pricing. With it coming in at 0.3%, could you break down how each factor's pricing made up this quarter's pricing, especially by quantifying what the RCM impact was? And then looking ahead. Go ahead, Kasandra.

Kasandra Rossi

Sorry, Matt, I cut you off your question. Please finish your question.

Matthew Mardula

No, I was just going to finish up with -- and then looking ahead to next quarter, how should we think about the sustainability of the pricing benefits we saw? And is there just any changes to the, kind of, key drivers of pricing than previously mentioned? And then with that RCM impact we saw this quarter, is that a reasonable way to think about it for next quarter as well?

Kasandra Rossi

Sure. So, first, I'll take the pricing components. And on the positive side, pricing was led by payer mix. A close second was the hospital administrative fees and coming in third was the acuity. So, I'd say for the payer mix impact, that was probably -- if you look at the positive impact for the pricing, it was about 40%. The hospital admin fee is about 25% and the acuity was about 15%. And maybe I'll hit the sustainability of those while we're talking about those. Listen, we've talked about the payer mix impact. It's continued to be favorable for us. And we don't anticipate anything changing there. But if anything, I think it will remain stable.

On the hospital admin fees, we talk about that each and every quarter. The hospital environment is tough. But when we require increases, we go to the hospital. We have those tough conversations, and we've been having success. So, we expect those conversations and those successes to continue. And on acuity, we talked about that a little bit in detail last quarter that we've looked at that really on a 3-year stack, and we have seen just a trajectory that takes that increasing. And of course, that is supported by the fact that we are in more Level 3s and Level 4s than anyone. So, we do consider those to be sustainable. But as with everything, there is variability and they do bounce around a bit.

And as far as the RCM, the lapping, we did start talking about that we would expect in the back half of the year to start seeing that lapping. It did impact the quarter by a little over 100 basis points. And I think right now, we are in a very steady state. But we have talked about continuing to look for ways to further automate. But we think that right now, it is very stable. But again, we'll look to deliver improvement there as we can over the next coming years.

Matthew Mardula

Great. And then in the prepared remarks, you, kind of, discussed the IDR process. Can you help us understand maybe the magnitude of IDR has on your business? Any, kind of, numbers around that? And then as we, kind of, look forward, what's giving you that confidence that this won't become a headwind, particularly if there's, like, many -- particularly if there are any changes to the IDR process that occurs?

Mark Ordan

Well, we're overwhelmingly, as we always have been, in network. So, the IDR process is not something that we've ever had to live based on. So, it's not -- I can't quantify it precisely. But again, we're always overwhelmingly in network.

Kasandra Rossi

Sorry, Matt. I was going to say with the changing rules, like Mark said, we don't anticipate -- we're one of those who -- like we said, we abide by the rules. We're doing the right thing. And so we don't anticipate any changes from the changes that are happening in that process.

Operator

And your next question comes from the line of A.J. Rice with UBS.

Albert Rice

Just to put a finer point on that, do you have a percentage of your revenues or claims or business that is in out of network at this point? I assume it's in the single digits, but is there a figure you can give us?

Mark Ordan

We have typically been out of network of less than 5% of our business. So, it's...

Albert Rice

About...

Mark Ordan

So, if that helps. With the IDR process now for several years. And as I said in my call, we've read about alleged abuses by others and people, I guess, as a learning, use different tactics. We think that the rules were well crafted, and we see the proposed changes. And we think the spirit and letter of the proposed changes is to make sure that there's a fair process between payers and providers.

In 2020, when the No Surprises Act first came out, we were supportive of it. We believe that if you're going to take care of the patient, the patient should be out of the middle. As long as the rules are fair and the payers are playing by the rules and providers are doing it the right way, we're comfortable.

Albert Rice

Yes. The company obviously came in ahead of expectations on the quarter, $85 million -- $85.5 million of EBITDA. You've updated the guidance. When I look at what that implies for fourth quarter, if I'm doing the math right, you get about $70 million to $80 million in EBITDA. Is there anything embedded in there? Is that natural seasonality? Is there something that doesn't recur that occurred in the Q3? Or are you just being conservative?

Kasandra Rossi

No, I'd say it just gives us a little bit of flexibility. Volumes have bounced around, pricing has bounced around, and it just gives us that flexibility to land in that range. So, nothing else baked in there, A.J.

Mark Ordan

No. A.J., it's only November.

Albert Rice

Okay. All right. You mentioned that you're still looking at high-value opportunities in adjacent businesses. I wondered maybe if I could get you to just flesh out what's behind that. What would be things that would be of interest to the company?

Mark Ordan

Well, I can only flesh it out a little bit. I'd say that what we have said repeatedly is that we have a very strong balance sheet, and we have the ability to make larger acquisitions. We strategically would only look at something that is in something adjacent to what we already do. So, staying in the women's and children's space is important to us. So, I'm just underscoring that when people look at our balance sheet and see our very low leverage, I don't want people to think that we're complacent and we're just sitting there. Yes, we've bought back shares, but not to the extent that it limits us from doing something if there's a very good opportunity. So, we do think in the women's and children's space are bound to be attractive opportunities, and we actively consider them.

Albert Rice

Okay. The level of share repurchase, I'll just wrap up with this. $83 million during the quarter. Any comments on pacing going forward on that?

Mark Ordan

No. We've tried to be opportunistic. We're happy that over the course of the last year, our average price was $23, which looks like it was a good buy. We'll consider along with the board what our pace going forward is. There are other opportunities.

Albert Rice

Yes. I understand.

Operator

Your next question comes from the line of Jack Slevin with Jefferies. Please go ahead.

Jack Slevin

There's a note in the release on a little bit of, it sounds like, small disposition activity in the quarter. Could you maybe just provide a little more color on maybe what took place from practice dispositions or how you're approaching that?

Kasandra Rossi

Yes. No, that's just the carryover from the disposition activity that happened in '24. So, when we were talking about non-same unit, it's the net of the acquisitions and any dispositions. So, it's just natural flow-through of that.

Jack Slevin

Okay. Understood. I appreciate the clarification there. A lot of questions have already been asked. Maybe just to understand what you're seeing on the labor front or from, like, a wage inflation perspective, how that's, sort of, tracking underlying in the business?

Kasandra Rossi

Yes. So, I would just say we kind of talked about we've been able to keep those clinical salaries in the last couple of years in that 3%, 3.5% area. And so we're really comfortable that what we saw back a few years back where we were in the mid- to high single digits at times, we're not seeing that. So, nothing really more to say on that, Jack.

Jack Slevin

Okay. And then one more for me, just a quick one. The mentioning of some of the coding changes, my understanding is there's an unbundling that's looking to happen next year of some of the related codes in your space. For those services, the way that I had read it, if you, sort of, trend towards the higher side of the acuity scale, that unbundling might end up being a positive opportunity. Got your comment, Mark, that you're, sort of, still weighing it up and you'll see what happens on the coding front. But I just want to understand if you could, sort of, handicap whether or not you think that possibly is a positive or a negative for you as you look at '27.

Mark Ordan

Rather not handicap it because it's really going to -- first of all, the rules are going to be -- should be finalized in the next few weeks in November. So, handicapping it before it all comes out, I don't think is going to be particularly helpful. And we're going to see based on the rules, how OBs react to that. So, I think it's a little bit hard. Yes, there potentially, depending on how the rules shake out, there could be opportunities on the OBH side or more on the OB side. But I think it's too early to tell, both because the rules aren't finalized, and we don't know how people are going to react to the rules. But again, importantly, for us, it's not a material part of our business, and this gives us an opportunity to see how the rules change and what we make.

Operator

The next question comes from the line of Whit Mayo with Leerink Partners.

Benjamin Mayo

Sorry about that, guys. A little early this morning. I know you're in the budgeting process, the planning process for '27, but just was wondering if you could share any headwinds, tailwinds as you're thinking about next year?

Mark Ordan

No, not at this point. I think, obviously, we'll report. As you said, we're in the budgeting process. We're looking at a lot of things, but we're not going to talk today about '27. I've given the characterization of the things that we're looking at that stand out right now. I think that covers it.

Benjamin Mayo

Okay. Maybe just on, like, the exchange stuff, like, I know you haven't seen a headwind this year. Would you think that maybe you see a little bit of a slip in mix next year? Or just any preliminary thoughts as it relates to payer mix?

Mark Ordan

It's hard for me to say that because we're -- starting in the fourth quarter of last year, we were getting this question, and we said, well, we don't know. And when people say, why aren't you reducing your numbers, I said because I could pull a number out of the air, but we prefer not to do that. We like to do things based on numbers. And that has continued. So, we haven't seen anything that points to it. I hypothesize that, possibly because of the population that we serve, people are doing a different calculation about the value of insurance without the subsidies, but that's me sitting around trying to figure out why our results are different than some people's are. But other than that, we continue -- and a lot of people, I would say, probably you included, thought that by the -- sometime in the first or second quarter, we would see the effect, and we haven't. So, I'm not sitting here worried about what happens next year. I'll be paying attention to it. We do check. And when we hear something anecdotal, we track it down to see if it's affecting us, and it just hasn't.

Benjamin Mayo

Yes. Maybe just last one, Kasandra, you mentioned in your prepared comments lower technology expenses. Can you just elaborate a little bit more on what that was?

Kasandra Rossi

Yes. Just some of the SaaS costs that we had just rolling out of the P&L.

Operator

Your next question comes from the line of Pito Chickering with Deutsche Bank.

Pito Chickering

I guess looking at the pricing, what percent of your NICU practices today have subsidies from hospitals? How has that changed in the last year? And where you can go next year or, sort of, what inning are we in at this point of getting subsidies for your NICU?

Mark Ordan

Yes. I'm sorry, I just want to make sure I understand the question, Pito. You're asking what percentage of our NICU revenue comes from?

Pito Chickering

What percent of your NICU -- so if you have 1,000 NICU practices, are half of them getting subsidies from the hospitals? Sort of, where are we on that at this point? And how has that changed in the last year?

Kasandra Rossi

No. It's not half. It's much lower than that.

Mark Ordan

And there's not much change year-to-year.

Pito Chickering

Okay. Do you think that, that can continue to grow going forward? I mean, I'm trying to understand we're seeing pressures in hospitals from practices getting more subsidies. I'm just curious, I guess, let me ask it differently, what inning are you guys in, in order to get subsidies for your practices? Are we in the second or third inning here, or are we in the seventh or eighth inning?

Mark Ordan

I'm not -- what I'm about to say is not sidestepping the question. But -- so let me -- I'll respond to that. We work very closely with our hospital partners. And we think that along with taking care of the patient, it's very important that they know that we do things very efficiently so that they're better off with us running that NICU than if they did it themselves. And we think we have to demonstrate that value all the time.

So, it's not like you come to the end of the year and you have a discussion, you have a constant relationship with the hospital to show that you're adding value. The reason that you receive a payment from the hospital is because if they did it themselves, they would have that or a greater expense. So, it's not charity. It's saying that they understand the real cost involved in providing the care that we provide and all the expenses that go in it to make sure that they're confident that they have a really, really high functioning NICU.

So, we feel, as Kasandra said, I'm making -- I'm being longer-winded about it. We feel that while those discussions are a push and pull, we feel that we can continue to demonstrate value and be fair in the request that we make of hospitals. And I think if hospitals value us and what we do, we think we'll be okay. Is it a higher pressure environment with the Big Beautiful Bill? Sure. That adds -- that takes away from the system. So, that's going to provide pressure.

Pito Chickering

So, if I ask this a slightly different way, I guess, looking at the economics of a NICU a patient, the technical component the hospital gets is very large, and therefore, the relative cost of any subsidies, frankly, is sort of fairly inconsequential. And so keeping NICU practices happy is a very profitable endeavor for hospitals due to the technical component. I guess I'm just trying to ballpark today, sort of, where we are? Is it, like, 1/4 of your practices today have subsidies? Is that the right ballpark, plus or minus?

Mark Ordan

Well, maybe in the future date. We haven't published that number. I don't want to -- I'd rather not cut it. As Kasandra said, it's considerably less than half. I appreciate your comment about the relative economics for us versus the hospital system. We might add you to our negotiating team, you can be helpful.

Pito Chickering

All right. Fair enough. Okay. Just because you guys look at this thing in the next few years, that for me seems like a pretty massive driver for pricing as a durable set going forward. So, any color you can provide to us in terms of how this has changed over time would be very helpful.

Mark Ordan

Sure.

Operator

And there are no further questions at this time. I would like to hand it back to Mark Ordan for closing remarks.

Mark Ordan

Great. Thank you all for joining us this morning and for your continued support of Pediatrix. Have a great day.

Operator

And this concludes today's conference call. Thank you all for joining. You may now disconnect.