Financial pressure — from Medicaid cuts to rising labor and technology costs — has pushed a growing number of hospitals and health systems to hand IT functions to outside vendors this year.
Below are four health systems that have outsourced some or all of their IT operations in 2026, as reported by Becker’s:
1. Trinity Health (Livonia, Mich.) is outsourcing its IT service desk and applications support to an outside technology partner it has not yet named. The 90-plus-hospital Catholic system said the transition will roll out in phases, with completion targeted by the end of 2026. Affected employees, whose roles involve internal tech support rather than clinical or patient-facing work, will get transition support and the chance to apply for new roles with Trinity Health or the incoming vendor. The move follows a January decision to shift certain revenue cycle functions to an external partner, cutting that department’s workforce by 10.5%. Trinity Health cited the accelerating pace and complexity of healthcare technology as the main driver, while also pointing to broader financial pressures, including reimbursement cuts and rising care costs.
2. UnityPoint Health (West Des Moines, Iowa) said in April it is eliminating 207 IT roles as it shifts IT and revenue cycle functions to Accenture. The change affects less than 1% of the system’s 31,000-member workforce, with the bulk of layoffs concentrated in Hiawatha and Des Moines, Iowa. Some affected employees have the option to transition to roles within UnityPoint Health or at Accenture; others are being offered severance, continuation of benefits, and career transition support.
3. PeaceHealth (Vancouver, Wash.) announced July 29 that it will transition several IT support services to global IT provider Tech Mahindra and its U.S.-based healthcare subsidiary, The HCI Group, starting in November. PeaceHealth said it will retain control of IT strategy, technology decisions and cybersecurity oversight, and that no direct patient-care roles will be eliminated. The system is still finalizing how many of its IT caregivers will be affected. The move follows earlier 2026 workforce reductions at the nonprofit system, including a February layoff of 94 employees.
4. Rochester (N.Y.) Regional Health began laying off coding staff at its Canton-Potsdam and Gouverneur hospitals in April as part of what it called a “targeted operational change” to reduce duplication and align administrative functions systemwide. According to Service Employees International Union Local 1199, the layoffs affect 22 union members and are tied to plans to outsource the coding work. More than 1,000 employees and community members signed a union-backed petition urging the health system’s board to reconsider, arguing that local knowledge of billing and coding is difficult to replace and that outsourcing has destabilized finances at other rural hospitals.
Editor’s note: This is a running list and is not exhaustive. If you know of other health systems that should be on this list, please email gbruce@beckershealthcare.com.
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