They're laid off because cancellayion of lucrative elective procedures gutted hospital revenue streams. (Which you know, hospitals are totally doing unnecessarily for mysterious reasons your conspiracy theory about "Plague theater" no doubt has a perfectly reasonable explanation for right?)[/quote]
That's not what an elective surgery means:
An elective surgery does not always mean it is optional. It simply means that the surgery can be scheduled in advance. It may be a surgery you choose to have for a better quality of life, but not for a life-threatening condition. But in some cases it may be for a serious condition such as cancer. Examples of elective surgery include removing a mole or wart, and having kidney stones removed. It may also be done if other forms of treatment are not working.
https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/ ... of-surgery
So, those hernia repairs, cancer treatments, heart valve procedures...things like that. Those are elective surgeries.