Hospital operator Tenet Healthcare Corp (THC.N), the target of an unsolicited takeover bid from a larger rival, forecast higher earnings in 2011 as patient volume trends improve. Fewer patients have been seeking medical treatment since many Americans lost jobs and health insurance coverage or saw their premiums and co-payments rise substantially in the weak economy. Tenet said on Tuesday that patient volume trends, while still negative, were moving in the right direction. Admissions to its hospitals in the fourth quarter were down 2 percent compared with the same period a year ago. In the third quarter, Tenet reported a 3.5 decline in hospital admissions vs. a year ago.
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