Ransomware is more than just an IT problem—it’s a serious financial risk that needs CFO attention. In healthcare, where technology is essential for patient care, ransomware can cost organizations millions every day. A Comparitech study found that U.S. hospitals lose about $1.9 million per day from ransomware downtime, adding up to $21.9 billion in losses over six years. These costs are only part of the problem. Ransomware also damages trust, especially among patients. When trust drops, patients may choose other providers, which hurts revenue. So, ransomware affects not just immediate finances but also the long-term stability and reputation of healthcare organizations.
The True Cost of Ransomware
- Healthcare organizations have faced an average of 17 days of downtime per ransomware attack, with some lasting from 4 to 27 days. Although a full 17-day shutdown is uncommon, there is about a 10% chance it could happen. Understanding both how often and how severe these attacks can be helps leaders better predict the impact and plan ways to reduce risk.
- Recovery and remediation costs are high, but they are only part of the financial impact of ransomware. In 2021, these costs reached about $1.85 million, up from $1.27 million the year before. Some organizations, like Tenet Healthcare and Scripps, have lost over $100 million in single incidents. Besides these direct costs, there are legal fees for compliance and liability, which can add up fast. Damage to reputation can also lead to long-term revenue loss as patients and stakeholders lose trust. These hidden costs can threaten a hospital’s financial health. Ransomware can also disrupt operations, delay patient care, and lead to regulatory penalties. For CFOs, this is not just a financial issue but a threat to business continuity. [hfma]
The CFO-CIO Collaboration Imperative
Recently, a CFO at a mid-sized healthcare organization saw the importance of working closely with IT after a major ransomware attack. The attack caused a 25-day outage and cost the organization over $3 million in lost revenue and crisis management. The CFO wished they had built a stronger partnership with the CIO sooner. This experience led to a new approach to cybersecurity. In the past, cybersecurity was mostly handled by IT, but the HFMA Fast Finance report says CFOs should be more involved, making sure investments support people, processes, and resilience—not just technology. [hfma.org], [cyopsecurity.com]
- Modern cybersecurity is about more than just technology. CFOs should budget for training, cross-department drills, and backups. This well-rounded approach helps protect business continuity. [cyopsecurity.com], [ey.com]
- Risk quantification: By assessing the daily cost of an outage, CFOs can model the ROI of cybersecurity investments. For example, if a $2M investment prevents even a single day of downtime, that’s a net positive. To strengthen this claim, a Monte Carlo simulation can be applied to determine probability-weighted savings versus spend. This approach involves running thousands of scenarios to simulate the uncertainty and variability in potential savings from a cybersecurity investment. Even a single chart of simulated outcomes can demonstrate to skeptical finance leaders how these savings can consistently outweigh the investment costs. This method provides a more convincing, data-driven argument for cybersecurity investments.
- CFOs and CIOs should work together to set priorities, model scenarios, and create governance plans. As Plante Moran’s Joe Oleksak said: “There’s often a distance between CFOs and CIOs… but not all of the investments are being made in the people and the processes”. [hfma.org], [cyopsecurity.com]
Best Practices for Financial Leaders
To make cybersecurity a core financial strategy, CFOs should:
- Include cybersecurity in your financial planning by setting aside 4–7% of the IT budget, which matches industry standards. This amount should reflect your organization’s risk tolerance. By matching your cybersecurity budget to your risk appetite, you make sure resources go to the most likely risks. This connection helps boards and CFOs make better decisions and strengthens governance. [healthcare-brew.com], [cyopsecurity.com]
- Use ransomware cost data, like $1.9 million per day of downtime, to plan ahead and run stress tests.
- Promote joint governance: Set up a CFO–CIO task force flagged for quarterly reviews on readiness metrics and resilience testing.
A Shifting Risk Landscape
Attack methods are changing. By 2025, ransomware will focus more on data extortion, where attackers steal data instead of just encrypting it. Even though ransom demands are expected to drop to about $343,000 in 2025, the bigger issues—like damage to reputation and more regulatory checks—will still be a problem. CFOs should see cybersecurity as protection against these hidden risks. It’s also important to focus on human defenses. Adding employee-focused controls, such as tighter access rules and regular data protection training, can help protect against these threats. Focusing on the human side of security shows that protecting an organization means keeping both people and data safe. [fiercehealthcare.com], [cybersecur…siders.com]
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