Philadelphia-based Jefferson Health is taking steps to reduce costs to help offset losses tied to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The 14-hospital system plans to eliminate between 500 and 600 positions through attrition and will cut pay for its "most senior executives," according to the Philadelphia Business Journal.
Jefferson Health is making cuts after reporting a net loss of $298.7 million in the fiscal year ended June 30. The system posted a loss after receiving $320 million in grants made available under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act to help cover lost revenue and expenses linked to the pandemic, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer.
"As one of the health systems in the United States with the largest amount of Covid patients during the surge, and one of the lowest employee infectivity rates, we took a 'no expense is too much to protect our employees' approach with PPE and other measures that drove up short-term expenses," Stephen Klasko, MD, president of Thomas Jefferson University and CEO of Jefferson Health, told the Philadelphia Business Journal.
Dr. Klasko said patient volumes are beginning to rebound, and the health system is ahead of budget for fiscal year 2021.
"We made a conscious decision, as the region's second-largest employer, to do no furloughs and only very few pre-planned layoffs during the pandemic surge," Dr. Klasko told the Philadelphia Business Journal. "Due to our financial stewardship and growth over the past five years, our balance sheet was very stable and remains very stable despite the pandemic tsunami."
In addition to cutting unfilled positions and reducing executive pay, the health system is taking a few other steps to achieve savings, including a pay freeze and a one-year suspension of employer contributions to employee retirements plans beginning Jan. 1.