EMPLOYEE REDUCTIONS AND THE ACA: CLEVELAND CLINIC

I am confused by reports of hospitals letting go employees.  The latest is the Cleveland Clinic.  Here is what I have found out:

David Graham of The Atlantic Magazine (September 20, 2013) Obamacare Isn't Really Taking Away Jobs: Cleveland Clinic Edition

When I reached [Eileen] Sheil* on Thursday, she seemed a bit confused by the emphasis on Obamacare in reports. "We've been working on reducing costs for years," she said.

"We felt health-care reform was absolutely necessary," Sheil said. "This is the new normal. This is where hospitals have to focus to be viable in the long run. This is not doomsday for the clinic. We're still growing — we're still hiring. The hardest thing is when it affects people."**

U.S. News Citing Obamacare, Cleveland Clinic to Cut $300M, Warns of Layoff ***

An early retirement package will be offered to about 3,000 employees by late October, Sheil told the Beacon Journal. Any possible layoffs will be considered after January, she added.

"We can do as much as we can to not affect the work force, but that's a difficult thing to do," Sheil said. "We've scrutinized the non-employee costs first, but it's just not going to be possible to meet this with those cuts alone."

I seem to recall that hospitals agreed to lowering fees because they expected more business so I don't know what is going on now.

* The Cleveland Clinic's Executive Director of Corporate Communications.
** http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2013/09/obamacare-isnt-really-taking-away-jobs-cleveland-clinic-edition/279834/
*** http://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2013/09/18/citing-obamacare-cleveland-clinic-to-cut-300m-warns-of-layoffs