Medicare cost reports · fiscal years ending August 2024 to August 2025

South Carolina skilled nursing benchmarks

The median South Carolina skilled nursing facility filed a cost report showing 89.8% occupancy, $317 of net patient revenue per patient day and $314 of total operating expense per patient day, across 165 full-year reports. Revenue per day is below the US median of $351. Medicaid paid for 63.7% of days at the median facility, against 62.1% nationally.

South Carolina against the US

South Carolina: 25th percentile, median and 75th percentile by metric, with the US median
Metric25th pctMedian75th pctUS medianRange
Occupancypatient days / bed days available82.6%89.8%93.5%82.6%
Net patient revenue per patient day$279$317$380$351
Total operating expense per patient day$276$314$363$355
Operating margin as reportednet patient revenue less total operating expense-10.1%1.2%6.0%-0.3%
Medicare share of days5.1%8.9%15.5%7.5%
Medicaid share of days42.1%63.7%77.4%62.1%
Other payers share of daysprivate pay, managed care, VA and others15.1%26.5%44.3%27.7%
Medicare PPS payment per Medicare day$569$600$631$627
Contract labor share of labor cost4.8%12.1%16.0%11.5%
Beds88106132106

middle half of South Carolina facilities South Carolina median US median

A 100-bed building at South Carolina medians

At 89.8% occupancy, 100 beds produce about 32,770 patient days a year. At the median revenue and expense per day, that is about $10,382,424 of net patient revenue against $10,300,827 of total operating expense, an operating result of $81,597 as the cost report counts it. The two medians come from different facilities, so this shows scale only.

Lenders do not underwrite that line. The cost report's total operating expense includes items a lender adds back or replaces with its own assumptions, such as rent, interest, depreciation and related-party management fees. Why reported margin is not EBITDAR.

Run your building against South Carolina

Change from the prior year's reports

MedianPrior reportsLatest reportsChange (points for occupancy and margin)
Occupancy86.5%89.8%+3.3 pts
Net patient revenue per day$297$317+6.8%
Operating expense per day$311$314+1.1%
Operating margin as reported-4.5%1.2%+5.6 pts

Prior reports: Skilled Nursing Facility Cost Report, fiscal years ending 2023-08 to 2024-09. Medians are of different sets of facilities in each year.

Other states

Source: CMS Skilled Nursing Facility Cost Report data (Skilled Nursing Facility Cost Report, posted October 2026), full-year reports with usable days and revenue. Per Patient Day is not affiliated with CMS. Methodology.