HCA Healthcare is cutting jobs across its corporate office and support functions due to rising costs, an increase in uninsured patients and healthcare policy changes. The Nashville-based company, which owns and operates TriStar hospitals, confirmed that a “small percentage” of positions are being eliminated. HCA has not shared exactly how many employees are affected or which departments face cuts. The company said affected employees will receive severance as well as recruitment and outplacement support. The layoffs come only months after HCA eliminated another “small portion” of its workforce in May. This primarily targeted non-direct patient care roles. HCA Faces Growing Pressure From Uninsured Patients The latest HCA Healthcare layoffs follow a challenging second quarter despite continued revenue growth. HCA reported second-quarter revenue of $20.23 billion, up 8.7% from a year earlier, while net income increased 2.8% to $1.7 billion. HCA Healthcare Q2 2026 earnings However, a shift toward uninsured patients had an estimated $400 million negative impact on pretax income during the quarter. Many of those patients lost coverage through health insurance exchanges. HCA subsequently lowered parts of its 2026 financial outlook. The company now expects the impact from health insurance exchange-related payer changes to reach between $1 billion and $1.2 billion this year. HCA Stock Falls Nearly 3% HCA Healthcare shares also came under pressure around the time of the layoff announcement. HCA stock closed at $402.06 on Sept. 2, down 2.79% for the session. The shares started the day above $410 before trending lower and finishing close to their daily lows. HCA Healthcare stock price (Source: CoinCodex) There were signs of a modest rebound ahead of the next trading session, with HCA shares up around 0.23% in premarket trading. Healthcare Layoffs Spread Across Major Hospital Systems HCA is not alone in reducing its workforce. Stanford Health Care recently disclosed plans to eliminate 95 jobs, including 79 technology and digital positions. John Muir Health is cutting another 78 positions across areas including finance, HR, IT, management and clinical care. Sharp HealthCare also announced a restructuring affecting about 260 employees in August. The San Diego-based system blamed rising labor and supply costs, stagnant government reimbursement rates and policy changes. Although healthcare layoffs have been less severe overall in 2026 than in 2025, financial pressure is still widespread. Through July, 45 hospitals and health systems announced workforce reductions involving roughly 5,800 disclosed positions.
