Garnet Health lays off 26 people, citing cost savings

Garnet Health recently announced that 26 people, ranging from management to union and non-union staffers, were laid off. The healthcare company said the layoffs would amount to $4.6 million in “salaries and benefits savings.”

In addition to the layoffs, Garnet also announced the restructuring of some of its services.

Inpatient palliative care services will no longer be provided by a team of dedicated palliative care specialists. Garnet explained that palliative care is a sub-specialty within internal medicine, and while the health facility has an expert hospitalist team of internal medicine providers who have palliative care training, they are not considered “palliative care specialists.” However, many of the core services the dedicated palliative care team provided, such as managing patients’ pain, will still be available through the hospitalist team of internal medicine providers.

Garnet Health Doctors will now “optimize the infectious disease practice to fit the needs of inpatients and reduce outpatient capacity due to lack of demand.” According to Garnet, it had expanded outpatient infectious disease services in late 2023/early 2024, but has since found that the demand to fill the expanded schedules was not enough. “So, we reduced outpatient capacity for infectious disease and realigned this service to better meet demand for inpatients who require infectious disease services,” a Garnet spokesperson explained.

Garnet Health also said it will phase out providing medical directorship to three local post-acute facilities. “For a number of years, Garnet Health Doctors has provided and subsidized medical directorship for three rehab/nursing home facilities in Orange County. We are no longer in a financial position to continue doing this. The three facilities have been notified that we will phase out these medical directorships by the end of the year, giving the facilities time to find new medical directors,” the spokesperson added.

“Over the past year, Garnet Health has been on a journey of transformation and financial recovery. And, along the way, many very difficult decisions have had to be made,” said Jonathan Schiller, president and CEO for Garnet Health. “We made a commitment to the communities we serve, as well as to our organization, to pursue fiscal strategies that will restore Garnet Health to pre-pandemic financial strength. As healthcare advances, we must be able to leverage opportunities that provide growth and stability so we can continue to improve the health of our community by providing exceptional healthcare for generations to come.”

According to the company, all affected staff have been notified and severance packages have been provided to those eligible.

“Every decision Garnet Health has made, and will continue to make, is done so with considerable care, weighing what will make the biggest impact on the health system’s financial well-being while ensuring little to no impact to our patients and their families, as well as the communities we serve. Garnet Health remains committed to regaining a stable financial future, one of growth and endurance to safeguard the health and well-being of our communities,” the company said in its announcement.