News Summary
Catholic Health, a major health system in Rockville Centre, announced plans to lay off 170 employees, affecting 1% of its workforce. This decision results from significant economic stress and follows a trend in the healthcare industry facing financial difficulties due to changing health policies and anticipated Medicaid cuts. The layoffs impact various facilities within the network, which includes six hospitals and multiple nursing homes. The organization experienced substantial operating losses in 2024 compared to previous years.
Rockville Centre – Catholic Health, a prominent health system based in Rockville Centre, has announced plans to lay off approximately 170 employees, amounting to about 1% of its total workforce of over 17,000. This reduction in staff is set to affect operations across the health system’s six hospitals, nursing homes, home health services, hospice, and physician practices.
The decision comes in response to significant economic pressures that the organization is currently facing. Dr. Patrick O’Shaughnessy, President and CEO of Catholic Health, indicated that the layoffs will impact employees at multiple facilities within the network. However, the health system has not provided specific details on which departments or positions will be affected.
This latest round of job cuts reflects a broader trend in the healthcare industry, particularly among institutions that are grappling with financial difficulties amid changing federal health policies. Recently, New York-Presbyterian disclosed plans to lay off 1,000 employees, representing approximately 2% of its workforce, while Columbia University also confirmed 180 job terminations amid a $400 million budget shortfall linked to its handling of protests.
One contributing factor to these workforce reductions has been the anticipated Medicaid reductions included in the House budget reconciliation bill, which could potentially cost New York hospitals billions of dollars. This situation is exacerbated by the economic impacts stemming from recent federal health and research spending cuts linked to the Trump administration.
In the past year, Catholic Health has reported significant financial challenges. For 2024, the organization faced $3.48 million in operating losses on revenues of $3.39 billion. This stands in stark contrast to its performance in 2023, when it posted a profit of $61.33 million from revenues of $3.15 billion. The system’s extensive operations have included admitting nearly 86,000 patients and conducting over half a million outpatient visits in 2024 alone.
Catholic Health’s network comprises six hospitals located on Long Island, making it the second largest hospital operator in the area, following Northwell Health. Additionally, the health system operates three nursing homes, 22 ambulatory care locations, and 14 outpatient rehabilitation centers as detailed in its annual report. Catholic Health is recognized as the third-largest employer on Long Island.
As the healthcare landscape continues to evolve and face challenges, organizations like Catholic Health are tasked with balancing necessary expense reductions while also ensuring future investments in growth and development. It remains to be seen how these layoffs will impact the overall quality of care provided to patients and the future stability of the health system.
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- Newsday: Catholic Health Layoffs
- Wikipedia: Catholic Health
- Crain’s New York: Catholic Health Layoffs
- Google Search: Catholic Health Layoffs
- WKBW: WNY Hospitals Seeing IV Fluid Shortage
- Google Scholar: Healthcare Layoffs
- Healthcare Dive: CommonSpirit Layoffs
- Encyclopedia Britannica: Healthcare Systems
- WGRZ: Catholic Health Layoffs Announcement
- Google News: Catholic Health Layoffs
