GALVESTON — Layoffs are inevitable at the University of Texas Medical Branch.

UTMB Web Site

The question, officials say, is exactly when and how many will lose their jobs after Hurricane Ike flooded buildings, including the hospital, and ran up $710 million in expenses at the island campus.

What’s clear is that the storm-battered institution — with only $100 million in flood insurance, only about $160 million in unrestricted reserves and facing the worst financial crisis in its 117-year history — would be not making layoff announcements this week or next, officials said.

But employees, who so far are still being paid, will have to endure an agonizing waiting game.

In a pivotal gathering of high-ranking state officials Tuesday, Gov. Rick Perry, Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, House Appropriations Committee Warren Chisum and Senate Finance Committee Chairman Steve Ogden and other key decision makers met with medical branch and University of Texas System officials to get a handle on what the island institution needs to stay afloat and avoid cutting 4,000 jobs, a third of its work force.

Officials adjourned without making any financial commitments or decisions, said Allison Castle, a spokeswoman for Perry’s office.

“It was a very productive meeting,” Castle said. “Essentially, UTMB laid out challenges, but no decision came out of that meeting.”

Perry is expected to convene a second meeting, possibly next week, for more talks about the medical branch’s future.

Earlier this month, Ogden, a Republican from Bryan, and other lawmakers stepped in to stop UT System officials from laying off 4,000 employees, some whose homes had been severely damaged by Hurricane Ike, which struck the island Sept. 13.

Storm surge flooded all 88 campus buildings, including the 500-bed John Sealy Hospital’s first floor. In all, water invaded 750,000 square feet of floor space.

The medical branch, which also operates research laboratories and the state’s oldest medical school, said Ike knocked its major revenue generators offline. Its hospital likely won’t reopen until next month and will be scaled down to about 200 beds when it does.

The institution would continue to pay employees for the foreseeable future, President David L. Callender said. But without major revenues from island clinics and hospitals, it could not for long sustain a payroll that in August was almost $70 million. That figure does not include its contract to treat prisoners, which generates about $20 million in payroll. State Rep. Craig Eiland, a Democrat from Galveston, said some layoffs would be necessary, but the race was about saving as many jobs as possible.

“My goal is to get people as many paychecks as we can while we work through this period of uncertainty,” Eiland said.

Still, some medical branch officials say they are hopeful state lawmakers will stop the financial hemorrhaging.

Ogden last week said Texas was in good financial shape, so helping wasn’t impossible. The state has an estimated $5 billion surplus, about $3 billion of which is earmarked to pay for property tax cuts lawmakers previously approved.

Dr. Ben Raimer, who leads the medical branch’s health care policy and legislative affairs team, said the mood in Austin was hopeful.

Although state officials have not offered immediate solutions, they have avoided rash decisions that would cause the medical branch to lose valuable employees who are difficult to replace. Before making decisions, lawmakers want to hear about how to improve the medical branch as it emerges from the crisis, Raimer said.

Before the storm, the medical branch was facing a $35 million deficit, despite a round of cost-cutting that trimmed 381 people from the payroll.

“Everybody is doing all they can to be helpful, and this requires thought,” Raimer said. “There’s an opportunity to make things better — a way to go about delivering health care and research.”

Raimer and other officials, however, are worried about how long employees can wait.

“Some people have immediate needs and can’t wait for someone else to make a decision,” he said.

The medical branch is working to restore some services. Among them is the 24-hour urgent care facility for children on its island campus. This week, its obstetrics and neonatal unit at John Sealy Hospital delivered the first babies born on the island since the storm. The 16-bed maternity unit opened Monday to care for high-risk pregnancies.

Its 16 mainland clinics are open, and a primary care clinic opened on Stewart Road in Galveston on Wednesday.

Since the storm, the medical branch has had to scramble to place hundreds of third- and fourth-year students at other hospitals.

On Monday, hundreds of first- and second-year students living in Texas A&M University at Galveston dormitories on Pelican Island will resume classes.