By Angela Gonzales

Banner Health, the state's largest health system and private employer, is eliminating some doctors as part of its restructuring efforts.

"A small number of providers have been notified that their positions will be eliminated," said Jennifer Ruble, senior director of public relations for the Phoenix-based health system.

In some cases, these changes were prompted by the planned closing of a clinic, a change in strategy around a specific specialty or rebalancing for community need, she said.

For example, Banner won't be offering a cardiology clinic at its Sun City and Peoria health centers. Those centers will stay open for primary care and a few other specialties.

Plus, several of those cardiologists will continue to work with Banner, but in a private practice model instead of an employed model, she said.

Banner also is closing its Casa Grande clinic because there wasn't enough need to support an obstetrics clinic. Those patients are being notified and transitioned to other providers in the Casa Grande community.

Ruble said it's too early to determine how many physicians are being impacted.

"Some of these providers may elect to come back into the system in a different capacity so the overall impact is not clear at this time," she said. "Care is being taken to appropriately transition patients in all circumstances."

Banner Medical Group currently employs more than 850 providers at 59 clinics in Arizona.

These physician layoffs follow the elimination of some leadership positions within Banner Health's hospital network over the past month.