"I don't understand this cost report at all," exclaimed Jeff Mahoney, the newly appointed administrator of Mountainview General Hospital. "Our administrative costs in the new pediatrics clinic are all over the map. One month the report shows $8,300, and the next month it's $16,100. What's going on?" Mahoney's question was posed to Maria McDonough, the hospital's director of Cost Management. "The main problem is that the clinic has experienced some widely varying patient loads in its first year of operation. There seems to be some confusion in the public's mind about what services we offer in the clinic. When do they come to the clinic? When do they go to the emergency room? That sort of thing. As the patient load has varied, we've frequently changed our clinic administrative staffing." Mahoney continued to puzzle over the report. "Could you pull some data together, Maria, so we can see how this cost behaves over a range of patient loads?" "You'll have it this afternoon," McDonough responded. Later that morning, McDonough gathered the following data: Month Administrative Cost January February March April May June July August September October November December Patient Load 1,400 $ 13,900 500 7,000 400 6,000 1,000 10,000 1,300 11,900 900 9,200 1,100 10,200 300 4,100 700 9,400 1,200 11,100 600 1,500 8,300 16,100 McDonough does not believe the first year's widely fluctuating patient load will be experienced again in the future. McDonough has estimated that the clinic's relevant range of monthly activity in the future will be 600 to 1,200 patients. Required: 1-a. Use the high-low method to estimate the cost behavior for the clinic's administrative costs. Express the cost behavior in formula form (Ya+ bx). 1-b. What is the variable cost per patient? Complete this question by entering your answers in the tabs below. Req 1A Req 1B Use the high-low method to estimate the cost behavior for the clinic's administrative costs. Express the cost behavior in formula form (Y = a + bx). Total monthly administrative cost = + Req 1A Req 1B What is the variable cost per patient? Variable cost per patient