CT hospitals cutting costs and jobs

St. Francis hospital will be laying off 200 workers and other CT hospitals are also cutting payroll, according to the Hartford Courant. Like other CT businesses, the cuts are due to the recession, in part, increasing the number of patients who can’t pay their bills, the number on public coverage such as HUSKY which pays less than private coverage, and patients delaying elective procedures. Also contributing are other structural shifts such as expanded home health care and competition from non-hospital based providers. Complicating the picture, however, for the last three years CT hospitals improved their operating margins (profits) significantly, totaling almost $250 million last year. Information on individual hospitals’ finances is expected later this month.
Ellen Andrews