Petaluma Health Center lays off 32 staff as Covid funds dry up

Petaluma Health Center CEO Pedro Toledo says the move is part of a restructuring to insure the non-profit can continue to sustainably serve patients.

photo credit: Noah Abrams/KRCB
Petaluma Health Center CEO Pedro Toledo at the unveiling of PHC's mobile clinic
in August 2022.

Petaluma Health Center has announced a round of layoffs as Covid specific funds expire.

32 people will be out of work due to the layoff, about six percent of Petaluma Health Center’s staff of over 500.

Petaluma Health Center CEO Pedro Toledo explained the need to shrink the payroll for the time being.

"We've been working on unwinding from our COVID-19 staffing levels," Toledo said. "And in addition to COVID-19 funding declines, there's also been a rise in everyday costs, so these layoffs were impacted by the critical loss of the $5 million in annual federal COVID-19 funding."

Toledo said they’ve tried to limit impacts to front line staff.

"We have some immunization nurses that were impacted," Toledo said. "Pharmacy techs, folks that would fill the medications and refills, individuals in the front and back office, administrative support for the medical teams as well as patient navigators who would help people get to services."

Toledo said the expectation is for the level of patient care to remain the same, and he said Petaluma Health Center’s footprint is actually set to grow."

"The plans are to continue to expand care throughout our service area, in other communities," Toledo said. "We just have to have a sustainable model in which to expand, right? Without the Covid subsidies, we were not able to maintain the level of staffing that we had in the past. We had to rightsize that staffing model so that it is sustainable and we'll continue to be a sustainable model as we spread it to other communities."

Toledo said Covid exposed for Petaluma Health Center, like many others, the disparities in health outcomes, especially for low income workers; and he said they plan to address some of the disparities by opening an urgent care clinic in Rohnert Park.