SEIU Creates Union For Health Care Workers, Including Nurses, Service Workers At Hospitals, Nursing Homes

Main Category: Nursing / Midwifery
Also Included In: Caregivers / Homecare;  Primary Care / General Practice
Article Date: 25 Jun 2007 - 17:00 PDT

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The Service Employees International Union, which has about 1.8 million members, on Friday in Baltimore plans to launch a new health care union that will serve about one million members who work in the industry, such as nurses and service workers at hospitals and nursing homes, the Baltimore Sun reports. SEIU Healthcare, which will have an annual budget of about $100 million, will combine financial and personnel resources, as well as political priorities and proposals, from the 38 local SEIU health care unions to improve health care practices and promote universal health insurance. However, the local SEIU health care unions will retain their leaders and authority in local and collective bargaining politics.

Dennis Rivera, who will serve as chair of SEIU Healthcare, said that the local SEIU health care unions lack cohesion and often have different names, slogans and identities. He added, "By coordinating our work and having a unity of mission and purpose and program, where we hold each other accountable and assist each other, we could reach the goals we've set for ourselves" (Cho, Baltimore Sun, 6/21).

Freelance Professionals
In related news, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Thursday examined how freelance professionals have begun to join unions that partner with large health insurers to provide affordable coverage. For example, the Freelancers Union, which has about 50,000 members nationwide, on June 5 announced a proposal under which the union will provide members with affordable health insurance through Golden Rule, a division of UnitedHealthcare.

Under the proposal, Freelancers Union members will have a selection of health plans, as well as access to UnitedHealthcare's network of 535,000 physicians and other health professionals and 4,700 hospitals nationwide. Ellen Laden, a Golden Rule spokesperson, said, "There are millions of freelancers who remain uninsured because they're not aware that there are affordable health insurance plans out there" (Joyner, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 6/21).

"Reprinted with permission from http://www.kaisernetwork.org. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery at http://www.kaisernetwork.org/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork.org, a free service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation . © 2005 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.

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