Carthage Area Hospital receives federal stimulus money; all announced job cutbacks reversed

CARTHAGE — Carthage Area Hospital learned Monday that it has received funding through the federal Paycheck Protection Program, allowing it to undo staff cutbacks announced Friday and return all employees to work.

The at least eight-week reprieve for 83 affected employees comes through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act that provides businesses with loans that can be used to cover payroll, benefits and salaries, as well as interest payments, rent and utilities.

If employers keep employees on staff for the eight-week eligibility period, the principal amount of the loans can be forgiven.

Owing to the COVID pandemic, Carthage Area Hospital, along with all other hospitals in the state, have been barred from performing elective surgeries and other procedures, dramatically reducing the facilities’ revenues. By the end of this past week, all area hospitals had announced a need to furlough employees to counter the loss in revenue.

Carthage Area Hospital said Friday that it was reducing its staff by 20 percent, affecting 83 employees. The measures included placing some employees on unpaid leave or reduced hours and temporarily reducing salaries. The hospital’s senior team, managers and medical staff also agreed to salary reductions.

But the Paycheck Protection Program eligibility reverses all of that, according to a statement from the hospital. Affected hourly employees returned to work Monday and any salaried employee or provider who agreed to a salary decrease will have their full pay restored. Any employee who was to be furloughed every other work will no longer have to do so and all other affected employees were also expected to return to work Monday.

Hospital spokeswoman Taylour L. Scanlin said the cutbacks announced Friday were necessary at that time because the hospital did not then have assurances that it would receive Paycheck Protection Program funding. The news Monday allowed the hospital to avert the planned cutbacks.

Samaritan Medical Center, St. Lawrence Health System and Claxton-Hepburn Hospital have each announced staff cutback in the wake of the COVID-19 crisis. Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo said Monday that he is working on plan to allow elective surgeries to resume at upstate hospitals, with an announcement on guidelines for this coming as soon as Tuesday.