File Photo
UMMC will close two wellness centers in the face of budget cuts and competition.
The University of Mississippi Medical Center will close the University Wellness Center Downtown and University Wellness Center Northeast, both in Jackson, by April 1.
The press release from UMMC says the closures are due to “unanticipated cuts in patient care reimbursement and other budget reductions.”
“We regret having to close these locations but our need to improve our finances leaves us little choice,” said Kevin Cook, chief executive officer of UMMC’s health system said in a press release. “We are attempting to minimize impacts on employees and members through this transition.”
On Feb. 22, UMMC administrators announced that departments and units across campus must identify ways to reduce expenses and/or increase revenue by a net $24 million by June 30. For fiscal-year 2017, the two Jackson wellness centers are projected to lose a combined $400,000, a press release from UMMC says.
Both centers employ 36 staff members who will remain on the job through March 31 and can apply for openings at the three remaining University Wellness Centers in Madison, Brandon and off Lakeland Drive in Flowood. The Flowood location is the largest of the three and used by the most members. Employees work for Power Wellness, the company that manages the centers for UMMC.
Membership in the centers won’t change, and those using the two Jackson locations, located at 100 E. Capitol St. and 46 Northtown Drive, will continue to have full access to the other three centers.
Comment