Greenwood Leflore Hospital to Lay Off Nearly 20% of Staff, Close Some Clinics
Greenwood Leflore Hospital will permanently lay off 86 staff members and close several service lines starting this week, officials said. The hospital, which serves the Mississippi Delta and is jointly owned by the city of Greenwood and Leflore County, has faced financial difficulties for years.
In a document provided to Mississippi Today, hospital officials said staffing reductions are part of preparations for either a transition of operations to a larger health system or a potential closure. Several departments, including the Wellness Center and After Hours Clinic, will close immediately. Other outpatient services, such as outpatient and cardiac rehabilitation clinics, will shut within 15 days.
Most layoffs will be immediate, with 46 full-time and 40 part-time employees affected. A small number of workers will be retained temporarily to support ongoing patient care and hospital operations. Despite the cuts, essential services like emergency medicine, surgery, neurology, and diagnostic testing will continue.
The hospital is exploring options to sell, lease, or transfer ownership to the University of Mississippi Medical Center, Mississippi’s only academic medical institution. A letter of intent was signed in February to discuss such a transaction, which would give UMMC control over the hospital’s land, facilities, and operations. Negotiations with UMMC have been ongoing since last year, but no agreement has been finalized.
Local officials expressed concern over the layoffs. Greenwood City Council President Ronnie Stevenson said the move was necessary to keep the hospital open but warned it could harm the local economy. He hopes employees will be rehired if the hospital’s ownership changes. Greenwood Mayor Kenderick Cox declined to comment.
Financial challenges have plagued the hospital for years. Before the pandemic, it was losing up to $9 million annually. The hospital has shut down departments, leased facilities, and sought grants to stay afloat. In 2023, it suspended 173 beds to reduce costs and warned that ongoing disputes over Medicaid overpayments threatened its future.
A court order in March temporarily halted Medicaid debt collections, which hospital officials said could force the hospital to close if resumed. The hospital filed a $50,000 bond as part of the legal process. State legislation passed in March allows the hospital to file for bankruptcy, though it has not yet done so, according to court records.
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