For-profit hospital ownership is tied to worse outcomes in major gastrointestinal surgeries.

• Patients at for-profit hospitals had 12% higher odds of 30-day complications.
• Elective surgeries at these facilities saw a 26% increase in in-hospital mortality and a 34% higher chance of non-home discharge.

Surgeons should consider these risks when evaluating surgical options for patients, despite lower overall costs at for-profit institutions.

• Complications were particularly pronounced in complicated surgeries, with odds ratios for complications reaching 29%.