Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income (Loss) - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended		6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2020	Jun. 30, 2019	Jun. 30, 2020	Jun. 30, 2019
Income Statement [Abstract]
Net operating revenues	$ 2,519	$ 3,302	$ 5,544	$ 6,679
Operating costs and expenses:
Salaries and benefits	1,282	1,488	2,690	3,030
Supplies	418	539	916	1,097
Other operating expenses	736	893	1,472	1,704
Government and other legal settlements and related costs	2	4	4	9
Lease cost and rent	82	81	163	162
Pandemic relief funds	(448)		(448)
Depreciation and amortization	141	153	285	305
Impairment and loss on sale of businesses, net	10	33	56	71
Total operating costs and expenses	2,223	3,191	5,138	6,378
Income from operations	296	111	406	301
Interest expense, net	260	265	523	522
Loss from early extinguishment of debt			4	31
Equity in earnings of unconsolidated affiliates	1	(5)	(6)	(9)
Income (loss) before income taxes	35	(149)	(115)	(243)
(Benefit from) provision for income taxes	(58)	(3)	(241)	3
Net income (loss)	93	(146)	126	(246)
Less: Net income attributable to noncontrolling interests	23	21	39	39
Net income (loss) attributable to Community Health Systems, Inc. stockholders	$ 70	$ (167)	$ 87	$ (285)
Earnings (loss) per share attributable to Community Health Systems, Inc. common stockholders:
Basic	$ 0.61	$ (1.47)	$ 0.76	$ (2.51)
Diluted	$ 0.61	$ (1.47)	$ 0.76	$ (2.51)
Weighted-average number of shares outstanding:
Basic	114,972,408	113,862,097	114,636,963	113,561,523
Diluted	115,013,661	113,862,097	114,696,496	113,561,523