Leadership | 12.05.22
Staffing Costs Drove $90 Million Loss for UVM Health Network
by VTDigger
Despite receiving $55 million in one-time federal and state funds to cover pandemic-related expenses, the University of Vermont Health Network closed out its fiscal year on Sept. 30 registering a $90 million loss. The network's operations in Vermont -- Central Vermont Medical Center, the University of Vermont Medical Center, Porter Medical Center, and UVM Health Network Home Health & Hospice -- accounted for nearly 56 percent of the deficit. The rest came from operating a trio of hospitals in New York. The primary cause of the loss was ballooning staffing costs, which the network said amounted to 3.3 percent of its overall budget. Rick Vincent, the network's CFO, remarks, "It's all labor, and temporary staff is the biggest component of that." Similar to hospitals nationwide, those within the UVM network had to depend more on traveling nurses and other medical support staffers to fill staffing gaps. At the same time, the rates charged by placement agencies for such temporary employees increased.
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