But most hospitals are scrambling to reduce the number of repeat patients, with mixed success.
As earnings wane, banks around the region are scrambling to reduce costs.
"Without question, the securities industry is now scrambling to reduce the excess capacity that was bought and built during the late 1990's," Henry McVey, an analyst at Morgan Stanley, said.
And with volatility in the markets, banks and hedge funds are scrambling to reduce risk and sell those securities that can be easily sold.
And while network carriers are scrambling to reduce seat capacity, pressure remains strong to keep ticket prices competitive with their rivals.
There is reason to worry that in a troubled economy, with unemployment high and employers scrambling to reduce costs, employers will simply pocket the savings.
The widely expected decisions by the companies to sell Sprint shares, which have fallen steeply over the last year, is yet another example of the belt-tightening telecommunications companies are making as they scramble to reduce debt.
While Merrill was scrambling to reduce its exposures, worsening conditions in late July shut down the market for even the highest-rated collateralized debt obligations, making it clear that Merrill's position was starting to look problematic, this person said.
At a time when many states are scrambling to reduce their medical expenditures because of looming budget deficits, Maine has taken the opposite course with a program to provide health insurance for all of the state's uninsured residents.
Worried about even greater losses if the crisis worsens, the banks have been scrambling to reduce their holdings of an investment that, like triple-A-rated subprime mortgage bonds, was once thought to be bulletproof.
