Jewish Hospital cuts 155 jobs, reflecting national trend of patients deferring treatment for economic reasons

In the face of a bad economy and people putting off health care to save money, Jewish Hospital is cutting 155 positions at its downtown Louisville facility. The move is part of a national trend, experts say."People are looking very carefully at any financial expenditure," healthcare consultant Peter Young told The Courier-Journal. (C-J Photo by Matt Stone)

Jewish Hospital & St. Mary's HealthCare, which owns the downtown facility, saw a 15 percent drop in in cardiology procedures in 2010 compared to the year before. That translates to 7,000 less cases. In total, surgeries fell almost 9 percent, The C-J's Patrick Howington and Laura Ungar report.

This is the second big cut by Jewish & St. Mary's. In March 2010, it eliminated 500 positions. The latest round of eliminations show why Jewish plans to merge with University Medical Center and Saint Joseph Health System is so important. "Health care is changing, and volumes are dropping while bad debt increases," Jewish Hospital officials said in a statement. "To be effective, growing organizations, we must be flexible and adapt." (Read more)