Hawaii Medical Center, which operates two medical facilities on O'ahu, will lay off at least 80 employees in the face of tough economic times, the hospital announced today.

The workforce reductions will include clinical and nonclinical staff, the hospital said.

Danelo Canete, HMC chief executive officer, said the decision to layoff the workers was difficult, but necessary.

"Our turn-around experts recommended this action in order to help us survive in a difficult economic time for the health care industry," Canete said. "While it is a hard decision, we recognize the need and will follow their recommendation."

Hawaii Medical Center LLC is the state's only for-profit hospital operator. It bought the former St. Francis Medical Centers in Liliha and 'Ewa from St. Francis Health Care System in January 2007. The buyers consisted of Kansas-based Cardiovascular Hospitals of America LLC and a group of local doctors that owns 49 percent of the company.

At the time of the purchase, the two hospitals were steeped in losses and the new owners had hoped to bring the two medical facilities back to sound financial health. But that has proved to be more difficult than hospital officials anticipated.

This past legislative session, Hawaii Medical Center asked elected officials for a break on the estimated $6 million a year it owes in general excised tax payments. That bill failed to pass.