The growth of investor-owned psychiatric hospitals

The number of investor-owned (proprietary) psychiatric hospitals in the United States has increased substantially in the past decade: these facilities now account for well over half of the nation's nongovernmental psychiatric hospitals. One of the reasons for this development has been the growth of multihospital chains, and another factor has been the economic advantages enjoyed by all investor-owned hospitals. These factors are likely to bring about further growth among investor-owned psychiatric hospitals in the future. Investor-owned hospitals in general, however, have become a subject of considerable controversy. Investor-owned psychiatric hospitals warrant specific consideration with respect to this controversy, particularly with respect to questions about quality of care.