BY JIMMY LAWTONNorth Country This Week

CANTON  — Approximately 30 employees in the St. Lawrence Region will be affected by cuts at Rochester Regional Health, according to an internal email obtained by North Country Now.

The email, titled “Message from the Office of the President: Organizational Changes,” outlines the elimination of the St. Lawrence Region–based coding department, along with a limited number of local finance roles whose responsibilities are described as duplicated within system-wide functions.

The St. Lawrence Region, which includes Canton-Potsdam, Massena and Gouverneur hospitals, is part of Rochester Regional Health, which operates facilities across western and northern New York. The  St. Lawrence Region is believed to employ around 2,000 people locally. 

According to the email, remaining coding work will transition to established external partners, though the email doesn't specify to whom.

The communication states that operating both local and outsourced coding functions “has created duplication and variation,” and that the move is intended to streamline administrative operations, improve consistency and compliance, and support long-term sustainability.

The email emphasizes that the St. Lawrence Region is “operationally stable and not in financial distress,” characterizing the changes as proactive and strategic rather than a response to current financial performance concerns.

“Our foremost responsibility is to ensure that Rochester Regional Health can continue providing dependable, high-quality care in the St. Lawrence Region for many years to come,” the message reads. It adds that the decision to eliminate positions “was not at all due to individuals’ performance.”

Leaders were instructed to approach conversations with affected employees “with empathy, patience, and clarity,” and to direct any media inquiries to Rochester Regional’s Marketing and Communications office. 

However attempts by North Country This Week to get a response from the email provided for the media were unsuccessful.

The email does not specify when the changes will take effect or whether severance or reassignment opportunities will be offered. However, calls received by North Country This Week from people claiming to have knowledge of the matter said the cuts had already taken place. North Country This Week could not immediately verify that information.

It's unclear if the organization will be reducing more staff in the near future. Recently, a number of OBGYN providers separated from the hospital.

North Country Now has reached out to Rochester Regional Health for comment and additional details on the timeline of the cuts and the potential impact on local operations, but received only the following  statement.

"Rochester Regional Health is making a targeted operational change in the St. Lawrence Region as part of our ongoing work to align administrative functions across our system and ensure long-term sustainability This change completes a transition that began with prior technology and workflow updates and allows us to reduce duplication while maintaining consistency, compliance, and access to care. The St. Lawrence Region remains operationally stable and deeply committed to serving the North Country community. We recognize the impact this has on affected team members and are committed to supporting them through this transition."