Chicago : Accretive Health to cut 170 jobs

Accretive Health Inc. plans to cut as many as 170 jobs this year, most of them in Chicago.

The company will keep its headquarters here but move some functions to Dallas and Detroit.

The moves, which the company announced this morning, come less than 10 months into the tenure of Stephen Schuckenbrock, the former Dell Inc. executive drafted by Accretive in a management shakeup that moved founder Mary Tolan to the chairman spot. Ms. Tolan stepped down from the position and left the company in November to "pursue other business interests."

The company will cut 140 to 170 positions, "mostly" in Chicago and all in North America, with 25 layoffs immediately, a spokesman said.

The company has about 1,500 employees in North America, he said.

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It's also about a year after the company said it would have to restate financial results for quarters stretching back to 2009. Accretive did not file any financial results in 2013. The revenue cycle management firm intends to file restated results by March 19.

The restatement came just as the company was struggling to refashion its image after a widely publicized investigation by the Minnesota attorney general's office in to losses of data and alleged harsh collection tactics from patients health systems in the Minneapolis area.

Executives are holding a town hall meeting with employees this morning to inform them of the eliminations.