
Research indicates that hospitals manage their earnings. However, these findings might be influenced by methodological issues. In this study, I exploit specific features of Dutch hospitals to study income smoothing while limiting these methodological issues. The managers of Dutch hospitals have the opportunity not only to postpone revenues to future periods but also to choose the moment of recognition of the postponed revenue. These postponements and recognitions can be positive as well as negative and have to be disclosed in hospitals' financial statements. I show that the patterns found with respect to postponing revenue and the recognition of postponed revenue are consistent with the expectation that hospitals attempt to smooth their income.
SDG 1 - No Poverty
SDG 1 - No Poverty
| selected citations These citations are derived from selected sources. This is an alternative to the "Influence" indicator, which also reflects the overall/total impact of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network (diachronically). | 12 | |
| popularity This indicator reflects the "current" impact/attention (the "hype") of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network. | Top 10% | |
| influence This indicator reflects the overall/total impact of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network (diachronically). | Average | |
| impulse This indicator reflects the initial momentum of an article directly after its publication, based on the underlying citation network. | Average |
