Surgery and other medical procedures are delayed by the Kaiser strike, patients say
Surgeries were rescheduled and other procedures were postponed as tens of thousands of Kaiser Permanente healthcare workers began to strike Wednesday.
Operations were rescheduled, chemotherapy treatments were canceled and other procedures deemed “non-urgent” were postponed as tens of thousands of health care workers nationwide began to strike Wednesday.
In what union leaders call the largest health care worker strike in U.S. history, more than 75,000 Kaiser Permanente employees across five states walked off the job this week, demanding better working conditions amid failed contract negotiations.
The strike, expected to last three days in some areas, affects more than 40 Kaiser Permanente hospitals and medical office buildings in California, Colorado, Washington, Oregon, Virginia and Washington, D.C., according to the Coalition of Kaiser Permanente Unions.
The majority of striking workers are in California, where Kaiser Permanente, the country’s largest nonprofit health care organization, is based.
Disruptions left patients in the state reeling.
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