StarMed Healthcare closes locations, lays off workers as it scales back operations

Charlotte-based StarMed Healthcare is closing two of its three locations and laying off 15 to 20 workers as the independent medical practice consolidates operations to battle rising costs, its president said Wednesday.

StarMed will no longer provide urgent care services but focus solely on primary care, President Michael Estramonte told The Charlotte Observer.

Its Central Avenue and Gastonia locations closed this week, he said. Patients at the Central Avenue site are being referred to StarMed’s flagship location on Tuckaseegee Road in west Charlotte.

StarMed opened in 2018 as a 24/7 walk-in clinic and immediate care center focused primarily on under-served communities. StarMed also opened at least 30 pop-up COVID testing and vaccine locations in Charlotte and other locations in North Carolina.

The Tuckaseegee location and future South Boulevard primary care site will operate 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays, Estramonte said.

Layoffs are across-the board, he said, including both clinical and non-clinical workers, from billing department workers to nurses.

StarMed has a total workforce of 120 to 130 clinical and non-clinical employees, and has made previous cost-cutting moves, Estramonte said.

Costs, from labor to supplies, have increased 33%, Estramonte said, and StarMed lacks the bargaining power of larger hospital chains.

The good news?

StarMed still plans to open a new $5-million South Boulevard location in December, Estramonte said.

Both the South Boulevard and Tuckaseegee Road clinics will be open 9 a.m.-5 p.m. weekdays, he said.