The
Horizon Health Network has announced it must find $12.5 million in
efficiencies in its budget by the end of this fiscal year.
The
sheer size of that sum means nearly 80 healthcare workers will be seeing
layoff notices on their desks in the near future. Horizon Health
Network CEO John McGarry tells Tide News the cuts will be happening on
all levels from administration on down.
On the one hand, McGarry
tells Tide News the cuts will not mean decreased quality of care;
however, he also says the cuts will mean people have to travel to get
certain types of care and wait longer for others. He says while Horizon
will attempt to be as compassionate, the fact is the majority of the
corporation's resources are spent on people, and thus jobs are what will
need to be cut.
He
blames the so-called "out of control growth" of the system in previous
decades for the current cuts, adding Horizon's situation is hardly
unique--on the contrary, it's a pattern that's playing out worldwide.