Vidant Health announces nearly 200 layoffs after financial troubles and tight budget
Vidant Health announced Monday that it will lay off 191 employees across its network to cut costs after revenues decreased in the first quarter of fiscal year 2020.
It is the largest hospital system serving Eastern North Carolina across 29 counties.
“Although the need for Vidant services remains high and volumes are up, the organization experienced a budget shortfall during the first quarter of FY20 due to decreasing reimbursements and increasing costs,” Vidant said in a press release.
The 1,708-bed health system faced an $18 million budget deficit during the first quarter of the 2020 fiscal year, according to a report from WITN in Greenville.
The company said the decision comes from “a careful and objective assessment” seeking to reduce costs, increase efficiency in operations and discontinuing recruitment and hiring for certain non-patient care positions.
In addition to layoffs, Vidant is cutting back on discretionary spending and improving system processes, he wrote.
“Making decisions that impact even one team member’s life is very difficult. We deeply value the contributions made by every team member. We are ensuring those impacted are supported by providing severance and comprehensive career counseling services,” Waldrum said in a statement. “This is not something we take lightly, and we will treat all impacted team members with respect.”
Vidant Health spokesman Brian Wudkwych provided The News & Observer with numbers, locations and departments of the layoffs:
▪ Vidant Health Corporate in Greenville — 82
▪ Vidant Medical Center in Greenville — 75
▪ Vidant Medical Group in Greenville — 11
▪ Vidant Beaufort Hospital in Washington — 7
▪ Vidant Edgecombe Hospital in Tarboro — 4
▪ Vidant Roanoke-Chowan Hospital in Ahoskie — 4
▪ Vidant North Hospital in Roanoke Rapids — 3
▪ Vidant Chowan Hospital in Edenton — 2
▪ Vidant Duplin Hospital in Kenansville — 2
▪ The Outer Banks Hospital in Nags Head — 1
This story was originally published March 9, 2020 at 3:27 PM.
