Hospital to cut about 50 jobs

Hospital to cut about 50 jobs: "LEOMINSTER — About 50 full-time jobs will be eliminated at the HealthAlliance Hospital — Leominster Campus, and one of two planned expansion projects may be cut back.

Mary Lourdes Burke, chief communications officer for the hospital, said yesterday the job cuts do not mean 50 layoffs, because some were vacant positions that will not be filled, and some were positions that had hours reduced. Also, she said, some union contracts required moving employees into other posts.

The cuts were made from the main Leominster Campus, the Burbank Campus in Fitchburg, and the HealthAlliance Homehealth & Hospice on Tucker Drive in Leominster.

While unable to specify all cuts, Ms. Burke said some management jobs were eliminated.

“We wanted to make the least impact on patient care delivery,” she said. “While it’s always a very difficult decision to eliminate jobs, we want to keep our community hospital open.”

There are about 1,600 employees and 150 patient beds on the campuses, she said.

Ms. Burke attributed the cuts to health care reform, with its reductions in Medicare and Medicaid reimbursements, along with cuts in private health insurance reimbursements and increasing co-payments for patients.

“Individual patients are cutting back on their health care because the out-of-pocket expenses are going up,” she said.