Cancer Treatment Centers lays off staff due to lower reimbursements
For-profit hospital company Cancer Treatment Centers of America has laid off workers systemwide, including some headquarters staff in Boca Raton.
The company focuses on individualized treatment for cancer patients and touts state-of-the art technologies. Besides its headquarters, Cancer Treatment Centers of America has hospitals in the Chicago area as well as in Atlanta; Philadelphia; Phoenix, Ariz.; and Tulsa, Okla.
Florida’s Department of Economic Opportunity in Tallahassee said it has not received a layoff notice from the company. Generally, companies with 100 or more employees must provide a 60-day notice of a layoff, under Florida law.
However, Abigail Obre, a company spokeswoman, confirmed the layoffs were across the company nationwide. She did not say what percentage of the work force was affected.
“Like the vast majority of U.S. health-care providers facing pressure to reduce costs, Cancer Treatment Centers of America has found it necessary to make certain organizational and staffing changes to align with declining reimbursement trends,” she said.
The company began moving its headquarters to Boca Raton from west suburban Schaumburg, Ill., in 2014. Landing the headquarters, now at 5900 Broken Sound Parkway NW, was a big win for the Business Development Board of Palm Beach County, the economic development agency.
At the time, the for-profit operator of cancer treatment hospitals said it would employ 225, with some moving from Illinois, and others hired locally.
Kelly Smallridge, president of the Business Development Board, said she had been wooing the health-care company to relocate to Palm Beach County for about 10 months. She said the area’s lower taxes, three airports, schools and housing were factors in choosing Boca Raton.
The company had also considered locations in Fort Lauderdale and Orlando, according to Gerard van Grinsven, who was the CEO at the time but resigned suddenly in 2015.
On Wednesday, Smallridge said she hadn’t heard from the company recently but noted in an email that there have been “several changes in the CEO position since we brought them here.”
In June, Cancer Treatment Centers of America was named to the 2018 list of “Best Places to Work in IT” by IDG’s Computerworld, which cited the organization’s benefits and compensation. On Wednesday, Cancer Treatment Centers of America said it laid off workers systemwide, including at its Boca Raton headquarters. Virgin Voyages presented it’s plans for a proposed new terminal at PortMiami. The terminal would be the home port for Virgin’s two upcoming ships, the Scarlet Lady and another ship. This is an illustration of the terminal.