Ascension to Lay Off 51 Workers, Outsource Employee Health Plan
Ascension will close its Ascension Care Management Insurance Holdings unit in St. Louis and lay off 51 workers, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported Nov. 7, citing a Nov. 6 WARN notice filed with Missouri's Office of Workforce Development. Layoffs begin Jan. 8 as Ascension moves administration of its employee health plan, SmartHealth, to Luminare Health, a subsidiary of Health Care Service Corp., effective Jan. 1; the plan will be renamed the Ascension Health Plan. Ascension said it is working with Luminare on retention and placement support for affected employees, and workers not retained or hired by Luminare will receive severance. The move follows Ascension's agreement to sell its stake in Arizona Medicaid plan Mercy Care to Aetna, the source notes.