The layoffs are tied to the closure of several urgent cares and physicians offices in the region.
Optum, a healthcare company owned by UnitedHealth Group, is laying off 525 people in multiple locations, many of them at urgent care facilities in Southern California.
The company, in a notice to the state’s Employment Development Department, said it was carrying out layoffs and “departmental closures” at 14 locations including Glendora, Montebello, Covina, Pasadena, Long Beach, Redlands, Highlands, Los Angeles, Beaumont, Irvine, El Segundo, Cerritos and Hayward in Alameda County.
Optum’s letter indicated that 161 of the terminated jobs are connected to California facilities but are performed remotely outside the state.
The layoffs will begin in a series of eight waves, the letter states, beginning Sept. 16 and concluding in January 2025.
Optum did not provide a reason for the job cuts in its letter to the state. It noted that none of the affected employees are represented by a union and that the layoffs will be permanent.
The department closures include urgent care facilities and physician offices in all cities mentioned except El Segundo and Cerritos, based on addresses provided by Optum. Other locations closing include two infusion centers.
In an email to the Southern California News Group on Wednesday, Optum declined to say why 525 people were losing their jobs and whether any severance pay would be offered. But the company is open to shifting affected employees to open positions within the company.
“We continually review the capabilities and services we offer to meet the growing and evolving needs of our businesses and the people we serve,” the statement reads. “As always, we will support affected team members with job placement resources and seek to deploy them where possible to any open roles within the company.”
The list of jobs to be terminated includes dozens of nurses, nurse practitioners, radiology technicians, physicians in urgent care and cardiology, patient care coordinators, and medical assistants. While some jobs were noted as hourly, most were not.
Facilities that are not closing but include layoffs are Optum’s corporate office in El Segundo, where the company is cutting 64 employees connected to that office, 29 of whom telecommute from outside the state. Another Optum office in Cerritos is cutting 157 employees, 26 on-site and another 132 who telecommute from other states.
Below is the list of facilities undergoing closures and the layoff counts:
Glendora: 1365 S Grand Ave. (21 employees) — urgent care
Montebello: 2603 Via Campo (28 employees) — urgent care
Covina: 420 W Rowland St. (18 employees) — primary and specialty care
Pasadena: 797 S Fair Oaks Ave. (55 employees) — urgent care
Long Beach: 2600 Redondo Ave. Suites 100 200 and 402 (37 employees) — urgent care
Long Beach: 2699 Atlantic Ave. (nine employees) — primary and specialty care
Redlands: 2 W Fern Ave. (10 employees) — primary and specialty care
Highland: 7000 Boulder Ave. (26 employees) — primary and specialty care and urgent care
Redlands: 245 Terracina Blvd Suites 100 105 106a and 106b (35 employees) — urgent care
Los Angeles: 1120 W Washington Blvd. (26 employees) — urgent care
Beaumont: 839 Highland Springs Ave (21 employees) — urgent care
Beaumont: 81 S Highland Springs Ave. Ste 101 (two employees) — physicians office
Irvine: 2300 Main St. (12 employees) — infusion services
Hayward: 26243 Research Road (three employees) — infusion services
Optum’s parent company, UnitedHealth, continues to deal with repercussions following a cyberattack on its Change Healthcare unit in early 2024, Bloomberg reported July 16. That hack compromised data for millions of Americans, while also holding up claims and payments across the company’s healthcare system. UnitedHealth second-quarter results reported that same week surpassed Wall Street’s expectations.
Another issue rippling through healthcare is a new California law that will begin boosting healthcare wages to a minimum floor of $25 hourly. Its enactment was delayed in June as lawmakers grappled with the state’s budget deficit. The increase, due to start July 1, is now delayed to Oct. 15 for 426,000 healthcare workers in the state.
The wage floor for workers in California is $16 hourly.
The new wage standards affected California’s budget because the state employs healthcare workers and also pays for health benefits through its Medicaid program.
