UW Health announced plans on Thursday to cut jobs in order to reduce millions of dollars in expenses.

The system will take a targeted approach focusing on areas such as improved delivery of care, labor efficiencies, and cost for supplies. The target of reducing expenses by $80 million will be accomplished over the next 18 months.

The health system is estimating about 25% or $20 million will come from labor, by managing overtime, not filling open positions and job cuts.

With 17,000 employees, UW Health gave a very rough estimate of 225 full-time positions, but that could change based on the salary of the positions cut.

We still don't know which departments will be affected.

“We exist as a health care organization for one reason: to improve the health of the patients and communities we serve,” said Kaplan. “And like every other organization, we must pursue our mission while maintaining the positive financial margin that sustains our operations."

UW Health also says the changes should not negatively affect a patient's access to care, and wait times could potentially improve.