Staff from a pediatric clinic in Kennewick are among those being laid off by Seattle Children’s Hospital.

The state Employment Security Department announced the layoffs in a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notice, or WARN. Seattle Children’s will lay off 154 staff across its operations in Kennewick, Seattle, Bellevue, Everett and Federal Way as well as remote workers, with separations beginning Nov. 15. It will also close 350 open positions.

The cuts represent 1.5% of Seattle Children’s workforce. The hospital did not disclose how many staff at its Kennewick clinic are being laid off or whether any services would be impacted when contacted by the Tri-Cities Area Journal of Business, though affirmed the clinic will remain open.

“Like health care institutions across the country, Seattle Children’s is facing significant financial impacts due to hundreds of millions of dollars in anticipated state and federal funding cuts,” Seattle Children’s said in a statement. “As a result, we are making some difficult but necessary decisions to secure Children’s future and protect our ability to deliver compassionate care and life-saving research for the patients and families who need us.”

The Tri-Cities clinic, located at 8232 W. Grandridge Blvd., offers 15 specialties, including cancer and blood disorders, craniofacial care, genetics and fetal care, among others.

It moved into a bigger clinic in 2021 to accommodate growing demand for services. It served 5,000 patients in 2019 at its Richland clinic, which opened in 2008.

Hospitals and health systems have warned that they may curtail services or reduce staffing due to Congress’ decision to cut funding to and restrict services from Medicaid, the federal health care program that serves low-income and disabled individuals. Many hospitals rely on Medicaid reimbursements to balance their budgets.

In mid-August, Providence’s Inland Northwest division announced it would lay off 126 workers and close four of its facilities: DominiCare, its home care service, and three orthopedic physical therapy clinics in and around Spokane. Providence owns and operates Kadlec Regional Medical Center in Richland.