From WisPolitics.com/WisBusiness.com …
— Staff at Rogers Behavioral Health Lincoln Center in West Allis have filed a petition to join a union, organizers announced.
The petition to join the National Union of Healthcare Workers was signed by a “supermajority” of staff, including therapists, nurses, nurse practitioners, doctors and other workers, according to last night’s announcement. The specific percentage was not provided.
The West Allis clinic is the largest outpatient clinic within Rogers Behavioral Health, with more than 100 patients per day, the release shows. Organizers say staff-to-patient ratios had “quadrupled in a short time,” putting a strain on the workers.
T’Anna Holst, a therapist and organizing committee member, says providers can’t help their patients if they’re burnt out.
“When we have so many patients, some people have to work through lunch and stay late instead of cutting corners on patient care,” she said in a statement.
Organizers say the West Allis staff are waiting for management to respond to their call for them to voluntarily recognize the union.
When asked for comment, a spokesperson for Rogers Behavioral Health provided a statement from company President and CEO Cindy Meyers acknowledging the petition.
“We are working closely with the National Labor Relations Board on next steps,” Meyers said.
The petition comes after Rogers workers in Madison last week filed a similar petition to join the California-based NUHW. The union says it represents the first of the company’s locations to unionize, in Walnut Creek, Calif.
— Milwaukee-area Dem lawmakers are seeking to establish a working group focused on statewide coordination of the state’s Medical Assistance program following changes at the federal level.
Rep. Sequanna Taylor and Sen. Chris Larson yesterday sent a co-sponsorship memo seeking support for LRB-6088. They point to recent federal changes to Medical Assistance under Public Law 119-221 that changed the program’s requirements and administration as the impetus for their working group proposal.
They say the changes create “new challenges” for recipients, as well as agencies and providers that play a role in the program.
“As these changes take effect, it is important for the state to assess how the program is functioning and identify opportunities to improve coordination and recipient experience,” they wrote.
Under the legislation, the state Department of Health Services would convene a Medical Assistance Coordination Working Group and assess ways to improve the experience of program recipients. It would include representatives from DHS, Aging and Disability Resource Centers, multi-county groups or tribal bodies that administer relevant programs, the Legislature, health care providers and program recipients.
The working group would be tasked with issuing a report to the Legislature and DHS within six months on their findings and recommendations.
The co-sponsorship deadline is 5 p.m. on Feb. 12.
See the bill text.
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