On June 26, hundreds of 1199SEIU hospital workers and their allies held an Advocacy Day to highlight the need for a fair, balanced legislative approach to payment reform and controlling costs in hospitals and health centers.

Hospital and community health center workers would like the proposed payment reform law to increase Medicaid reimbursement rates. . Caregivers are also advocating for the bill to require an investment in healthcare training to assist workers whose jobs may be impacted by the new reforms. Union members are calling for the final bill to include a “Healthcare Workforce Transformation Fund” to help incumbent healthcare workers train for the jobs of the future within the industry. While caregivers say the exact number of jobs that will be affected by the bill is unclear, it is clear that many care delivery models will change.

Union members visited their elected officials at the State House during the afternoon and made sure that their voices were heard on the issues.

After meeting with their elected officials, a rally was held outside on the front steps of the State House. Speakers included 1199SEIU members Jonell Johnson and Marci Lyford, along with 1199SEIU Executive Vice President Veronica Turner, Steward CEO Ralph de la Torre, and state representative Carlos Henriquez.

Johnson, an RN at Boston Medical Center, said that she has served patients from across the state, from Leominster to Fall River to Pittsfield.

“Why do patients come from so far away? Because they love the quality of healthcare…Because, most importantly, families feel at home in the hospital…We serve a needy population. We need better reimbursement rates…Our hospitals must receive adequate reimbursement rates for the services we provide our patients. Conference committee, do the right thing.”

Currently, there is a conference committee composed of three state representative and three senators. This committee will take the proposed state budgets for both the House of Representatives and Senate and merge them together to create one final state budget for the Governor to review. The governor will then have the opportunity to veto different parts of the budget and accept other parts until a final budget is reached.

“Today we gather to light the path. To show there is more to be gained through cooperation, rather than conflict. This cooperation is vital to face the challenges to our healthcare system,” said Marci Lyford, a union member at Good Samaritan Medical Center in Brockton. “The patient benefits when we all work together.”

1199SEIU members are supportive of the overall goals of payment reform and want to ensure the final legislation takes a balanced approach to cost control – one that does not jeopardize patient access or place undue strain on already struggling community and safety net hospitals.

Advocacy Day began at the Union Hall in Dorchester, where hundreds of hospital and community health center workers discussed the need for reforms to the way hospitals are paid. Participants agreed that distressed community and safety net hospitals need increased Medicaid reimbursement rates so that patient care will not be jeopardized.

Marie Clement, a certified nursing assistant at Whidden Memorial Hospital in Everett, said that a training fund is very important for many caregivers.

“We need more funding for the safety net hospitals. We need the training fund.,” said Marie, who, as do many other healthcare workers, would like to be trained properly to handle upcoming changes in the healthcare industry.

In the afternoon, union members headed to the State House to meet with their elected officials. State representatives and senators had sometimes two to three meetings with different groups of healthcare workers, all of whom laid out the top priorities for 1199SEIU members for the payment reform legislation.

1199SEIU members urged their elected officials to write letters to the members of the conference committee encouraging the six members to ensure that the upcoming payment reform bill increases Medicaid payment rates, creates a training fund for workers, and grants healthcare workers a seat on any new boards created by the bill.

Michelle Trombly from Health Alliance Burbank in Fitchburg, met with representatives of her senator and state representative.



“I hope that they’re more aware that more people in our area…do have something to say about what’s happening,” she said. “We have a lot of jobs in our hospitals that are disappearing…They’ve minimized our staff. That’s very important to me, to help people get more education.”



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