Ellison Medical Institute to Lay Off 88 in January
The Los Angeles cancer research center plans permanent cuts as other local healthcare providers also reduce staff.
Updated on Nov. 12, 2026 in Healthcare
Live Poll
Do you think healthcare services in Los Angeles are getting worse?
The Ellison Medical Institute, a cancer research center funded by Larry Ellison, plans to permanently lay off 88 employees in January. The institute filed a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification on Nov. 4 and did not respond to requests for comment on the reasons.
Why it matters
The cuts add to a wave of layoffs and cutbacks at Los Angeles medical institutes, hospitals and healthcare providers. The institute's planned prostate cancer treatment and AI-focused research partnership are not affected by the reported layoffs in the available details.
The institute plans to cut 88 positions out of a LinkedIn-listed headcount of 51 to 200 employees, based on its Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification filed Nov. 4. Kaiser Permanente separately plans to cut 147 business and administrative jobs across California starting Nov. 20, and the reasons behind the institute's cuts remain undisclosed.
The players
Ellison Medical Institute
A Los Angeles cancer research center funded by Larry Ellison, which in 2016 saw him donate $200 million to USC to build an interdisciplinary cancer medical center.
Kaiser Permanente
A large California health care system that is cutting 147 business and administrative jobs across the state, affecting 16 locations.
The details
The institute, located at 12414 Exposition Blvd. in an 84,000-square-foot building, is led by founding chief executive and oncologist David Agus. In June it signed an exclusive license with UniQuest to advance a new prostate cancer treatment that could reach first-in-human trials as early as 2027.
Timeline
Nov. 4: Institute files WARN notice for planned layoffs.
Nov. 20: Kaiser Permanente cuts begin across California.
January: Ellison Medical Institute permanently lays off 88 employees.
2027: Prostate cancer drug could reach first-in-human trials.
Market Landscape
The institute's cuts follow 2025 reductions at Children's Hospital Los Angeles, which cut 5.8% of its staff, and at Keck Medicine of USC, which eliminated 89 employees in October. Together these moves suggest a sustained contraction among Los Angeles healthcare employers rather than a single isolated decision.
Employees of the institute face permanent job losses in January, and Los Angeles patients may see the effects only indirectly through the pace of the institute's cancer research. Residents who rely on local hospital and provider services should watch for further staffing changes across the region.
The takeaway
Layoffs at a well-funded research center show that even heavily backed healthcare organizations are not insulated from workforce reductions. Readers tracking Los Angeles health jobs should follow WARN filings, which often signal cuts before they take effect.
What happens next
The 88 permanent layoffs are scheduled to take effect in January, and the 2027 first-in-human trial timeline for the prostate cancer treatment is a projected date.
Further reading
For more on the sector, see Healthcare coverage of Los Angeles hospital and provider workforce changes.
Live Poll
Do you think healthcare services in Los Angeles are getting worse?
