Free Republic

Appalachian Regional Healthcare, a 13-hospital system in Lexington, Ky., will furlough about 500 employees due to a sharp reduction in business and revenue, according to the Lexington Herald Leader. Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear ordered hospitals in the state to suspend elective procedures March 23 to preserve protective equipment and bed space for COVID-19 patients. As a result, the hospital system has seen a 30 percent decrease in business, according to the report. Appalachian Regional said its decision to temporarily reduce staff was to protect employees not involved in direct patient care from contracting the novel virus and ensure that the...

The Cleveland Clinic, which is ranked among the top four U.S. hospitals, is making layoffs and cutting its budget more than $100 million as a direct result of the Affordable Care Act, the Daily Caller has learned. “The cuts for 2014, about half of those are related to the Affordable Care Act…We anticipate a reduction in workforce,” Cleveland Clinic executive director of communications Eileen Sheil said in an interview with TheDC.

Forty-four employees of Taos Health Systems and its subsidiary, Holy Cross Hospital, will be laid off in a move administrators claim is necessary amid changing trends in the health care sector, though staff warn the cuts could imperil patients. ... Union organizers suggested the cuts could precede a change in status for Holy Cross from an acute-care hospital to a critical access hospital.

Christus St. Vincent Regional Medical Center said Monday it is eliminating 58 positions and laying off 36 employees as part of a restructuring to meet the challenges of the federal Affordable Care Act. Hospital administrators said the layoffs will stretch across all departments, including 15 management positions. Christus St. Vincent President and CEO Bruce Tassin said the reductions will trim $4 million from the Santa Fe hospital’s payroll.

Hospitals are expected to cut some 93,000 jobs in 2013 in anticipation of ObamaCare. A former presidential candidate and conservative advocate says America needs to prepare for major changes in the medical industry. Orlando Health, a not-for-profit network of community and specialty hospitals, is just one example of the massive layoffs expected in the coming year. Officials with the Central Florida-based healthcare services provider announced on Monday that the largest staff reduction in its nearly 100-year history will result in cutting up to 400 jobs, starting immediately. Gary Bauer, president of Washington DC-based American Values, warns that this is only...