Bellevue Woman's Center to end surgical services, move to Ellis

SCHENECTADY, N.Y. (NEWS10) — The New York State Nurses Association (NYSNA) held a town hall meeting on Wednesday night to address women’s healthcare services they said are under attack in the Capital Region. As soon as next week, surgical services will be moved from Bellevue Woman’s Center to Ellis Hospital. Nurses and the community came together to voice their concerns of what they feel is next to come under the Ellis, St. Peter’s Health Partners merger.

“Women’s healthcare is falling farther and farther behind. We should be ashamed of ourselves in Schenectady County that we are allowing our young women to receive worse and worse care. We need to take care of our women, and we need to do better,” said one community member in attendance at the meeting.

“Please, let’s protect what we do at Bellevue. Please, let’s not let corporations take over what we do,” pleaded a member of NYSNA.

People spoke passionately, both those who’ve received care at Bellevue and those who work there. They said they feared the impact on women’s healthcare services as a result of the merger. Starting next week, surgical services will be cut from Bellevue, and 14 nurses will be laid off. Leadership with Ellis promised only abortions would not be allowed under the merger with a Catholic hospital.

A NYSNA member disagreed. “Don’t tell us that you’re not going to do something and then you do it anyway. We’re not stupid. We’re aware. We’re educated. We know what’s going on.”

Members of the community said more should be done to inform patients of change. “Healthcare without a voice in the process, like the local Input and Community Health Care Act, which will require public notice, meaningful engagement, and stronger state review before any hospital or critical service line could collapse.”

Many of the concerns brought up about Bellevue came to the forefront when St. Peter’s suddenly announced the closure of the Burdett Birth Center in Troy. After a public outcry and state infusion of cash, the center was kept open, for now.

“As these changes are underway, we may eventually face the same fate. We are all here tonight because Ellis needs to invest in its nurses, its local community, and put patient care over corporate profits.”

Some at the meeting asked the politicians in the room what they were doing to save Bellevue. “Is there anything you guys are doing right now to address this?”

The room was silent for a moment until Assemblyman Phil Steck took to the podium and urged the people to speak out to the governor and lawmakers. “We don’t want to lose that. That is important to the medical care for the community, and the other stuff is B.S.”

Ellis Hospital responded with the following statement:

“Ellis Medicine is finalizing plans to move outpatient surgical procedures currently performed at Bellevue Woman’s Center to our main Ellis Hospital campus. This is a routine operational adjustment, similar to changes made by health systems everywhere to ensure resources are being used wisely to serve patients. 

Both Bellevue and Ellis Hospital have excess surgical capacity, and moving surgical patients to one location simply makes sense. It allows us to centralize resources, strengthen clinical consistency, and operate more efficiently in a healthcare environment that continues to grow more challenging.

Bellevue Woman’s Center remains fully open, with no plans to close. Maternity patients, including those receiving planned and emergency C-sections, will continue to be cared for at Bellevue. Other key women’s health services — such as mammography — also remain unchanged. Bellevue remains a vital part of Ellis Medicine and a cornerstone of our strategy for women’s health.

This move reflects our commitment to Stewardship — one of Ellis Medicine’s core values. Like all healthcare organizations, we are navigating significant financial pressures and growing uncertainty tied to Medicaid and Medicare changes coming out of Washington. We owe it to our patients, staff, and community to make responsible decisions to ensure continued access to care and the long-term strength of our health system.

We are working closely with impacted employees to help them find opportunities elsewhere within Ellis at equal or better pay.

Ellis made a similar move in 2020 when we transitioned outpatient surgeries from our McClellan campus to Ellis Hospital — a change that improved the use of resources while continuing to provide high-quality patient care.

At Bellevue, we originally targeted this shift for Jan. 1, 2026, but now expect this to happen sooner — likely this fall — depending on staffing levels.”

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