Check out this news!
Today, the California Department of
Managed Health Care announced it's fining Kaiser Permanente $4 million for
serious violations uncovered by NUHW.
The $4 million fine is the second largest
in the agency's history!
Here's what happened:
NUHW represents 2,500 clinicians who care for mental health
patients in dozens of Kaiser's clinics, hospitals and emergency rooms across
California. In 2011, NUHW filed this
complaint with state officials alleging that Kaiser systematically
understaffs its clinics and forces mental health patients to wait for weeks
to get care.
Kaiser's fat-cat executives, of course, denied the allegations. And SEIU-UHW's Dave Regan reacted to the complaint by cozying up even closer to its law-breaking corporate "partner."
Then, in March, the state issued a 23-page
report that blasted Kaiser for serious violations
of state law -- including forcing patients to wait weeks and weeks for
treatment. The state even found that Kaiser uses duplicate paper lists to hide patients' lengthy wait
times for appointments.
Finally, today, the state announced a
$4 million fine against Kaiser! The agency also filed a "Cease
and Desist Order" to force Kaiser to provide its patients with the care
they need, deserve and pay for.
Tasty's sources say NUHW's victory is a huge win for mental health
patients and healthcare workers in California... especially because Kaiser is the state’s
largest HMO with 7 million members.
Quite impressive what a real union can actually do, right?
