Submitted by Grays Harbor Community Hospital
COVID-19 is having a devastating health and economic impact on our community and our state. On March 19 Governor Jay Inslee ordered the halt to elective procedures in order to conserve personal protective equipment for medical staff treating coronavirus patients. The success of Gov. Inslee’s “stay-at-home” order has resulted in significant reductions to our ER and primary care clinic volumes as well. Due to these orders, we have seen a 45 percent reduction in outpatient volume. Grays Harbor Community Hospital (GHCH) and Harbor Medical Group (HMG) rely on outpatient revenue to ensure financial viability. During this same period, our organizations have seen increased costs associated with the fight against COVID-19.
On April 2 Gov. Inslee extended the “stay-at-home” order through May 4. We absolutely agree with this decision, however the economic impact of this decision on Grays Harbor Community Hospital has been substantial. In order to continue our mission to heal comfort and serve our community with compassion, we must continue to exist as an organization. This means significant steps had to be taken.
After careful consideration of the economic impact of COVID-19 on Grays Harbor Community Hospital, we have decided to make some difficult personnel decisions to ensure the long-term viability of GHCH. For approximately 90 days, beginning Monday, April 13 we will implement an 18% reduction to our staffing levels. This will be done through temporary furloughs, and reduced hours.
We have chosen these methods of reduction to maximize our employees’ eligibility for enhanced unemployment benefits while continuing to offer them access to as many benefits as possible. Furloughs, allow us to keep staff as employees so that we can quickly adapt to a COVID-19 surge and be prepared to provide a full range of healthcare services to our community as soon as Gov. Inslee lifts his order.
As you may have heard Grays Harbor Community Hospital has been identified by the Washington State Hospital Association as one of five hospitals facing closure due to having less than 45 days cash on hand. While the most widely spread article about this fact uses the phrase “imminent closure,” the situation is neither that immediate nor unavoidable. However, without significant support from our State and Federal Governments GHCH will struggle to remain open and serving our community during this most crucial time.
“While we have seen increased financial pressures due to COVID-19, having a challenging cash position at Grays Harbor Community Hospital is not new. The last time we had more than 45 days cash on hand was in 2017. We have been working with state officials for years to help overcome the obstacles inherent to serving an economically struggling community like ours,” said Chief Financial Officer, Niall Foley.
In order to manage the cash flow impact of COVID-19, we are taking action to adjust employment levels while volumes remain low. State and federal stimulus packages are helping a little with cash flow impacts due to lost revenue, but the current level of support is not at sustainable levels for our organization. Another option we have is to take a low interest loan from Medicare if we need additional emergency funds to continuing serving our community through this crisis.
We are taking every precaution to limit the impact on services currently being offered, especially the staff treating COVID-19 patients. Our intent during this pandemic is to be smart stewards of GHCH resources, protect jobs long-term, and remain a strong resource for the community.
Said CEO Tom Jensen, “This is an unprecedented time in our nation’s history, and we have worked very hard to avoid these actions as we recognize the impact on our employees and their families. We will continue to explore every channel possible to minimize the depth and duration of this reduction. Our ultimate goal is to make sure Grays Harbor Community Hospital survives this ordeal so that we can continue to heal, comfort and serve our community for years to come.”
