Mass General Brigham Hospital, the largest private employer in Massachusetts, aims to cut approximately 1,500 positions in two waves between February and March.

The layoffs — the largest in the hospital’s history — will save MGB more than $200 million from its $10.3 billion salary. Representatives for the hospital said the layoffs are necessary to get ahead of a projected shortfall of $250 million over the next two years.

Anne Klibanski, president and CEO of MGB, said in a letter to her colleagues shared with the Daily Free Press that the layoffs will be part of a “strategic reorganization” and will mainly focus on “non-clinical and non-patient facing roles.”

According to the letter, layoffs are due to “unrelenting pressure” on the healthcare system and “poor financial performance” from recent years. The letter acknowledges that news of layoffs is difficult and said MGB is committed to treating its employees with dignity and respect, but no specific measures moving forward are mentioned. 

Jennifer Street, senior vice president of communications at MGB, said in an email to the Daily Free Press that the layoffs are meant to “enhance efficiency, reduce costs, and maximize support for frontline clinicians.” Street wrote that impacted employees will be given “market competitive severance packages and benefits coverage.”

In November, MGB employees attempted to unionize due to physician access issues and the corporatization of healthcare. 

David Rosenbloom, a professor emeritus of the BU School of Public Health, said layoffs are occurring because MGB is attempting to prepare itself for income stream changes in the future, especially those involving recent NIH funding cuts by the Trump administration.

“Lots of people would get hurt if these cuts go forward, but it could be a real hit to MGB,” Rosenbloom said.

MGB contributes over $53 million to the state of Massachusetts and employs over 82,000 workers. Rosenbloom said it’s the best-situated hospital in the state when it comes to facing income changes. 

He described the layoffs as a “disaster” for workers that will “add stress to remaining employees … add to employee burnout, and in some areas, it will probably make things harder for patients.”

The vague description of who will be laid off leaves the effect on patient care unknown to both Klibanski and others, Rosenbloom said. 

“[MGB is] taking a long-term bet that they will be better able to survive and better positioned competitively,” Rosenbloom said. “When the coming financial challenges to the industry get worked through, they’ll be left stronger than everybody else.”