TELL CITY – Declining reimbursements and a shift to outpatient care has prompted Perry County Memorial Hospital to lay off seven employees. The hospital said the reductions in force, announced Thursday, were in response to declining healthcare reimbursements, increasing operating costs and a shift in patient treatment from inpatient care to outpatient and ambulatory care.
Hospital spokeswoman Laura Schilling said the hospital had already worked to reduce operating expenses before making the decision to lay off staff. Many of the affected employees were offered the opportunity to apply for other open positions at the hospital.
According to a breakdown of finances given to the board of trustees monthly, the hospital had income from operations of $497,000 for the first three months of 2017 with $221,000 earned in March alone.
The new hospital opened in the spring of 2015.
The hospital also issued the following statement.
“As PCMH looks to the future it will continue to provide quality care, improved access and expand services to meet community needs. Recently, three nurse practitioners were hired and the evening quick care clinic opened in Tell City. PCMH’s providers are accepting new patients. A tele-psychiatry program is scheduled to begin June 1 and negotiations are in the final stages to provide orthopedic services later this year. PCMH, in partnership with Tri State Community Clinics, was selected to provide a Wellness Clinic to Tell City Schools. The Wellness Clinic is scheduled to begin in January 2018. The recruitment for additional physicians to join the hospital continues.