nurse New York
New york state edition | may 2020
Reopen with care!
NY Primary Election endorsements, pp. 7-12
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New York Nurse may 2020
WHAT IS JUSTICE? By Judy SheridanGonzalez, RN, NYSNA President
Advocating for patients. Advancing the profession.SM Board of Directors President Judy Sheridan-Gonzalez, RN, MSN, FNP judy.sheridan-gonzalez@nysna.org First Vice President Anthony Ciampa, RN anthony.ciampa@nysna.org Second Vice President Karine M. Raymond, RN, MSN karine.raymond@nysna.org Secretary Tracey Kavanagh, RN, BSN tracey.kavanagh@nysna.org Treasurer Nancy Hagans, RN nancy.hagans@nysna.org Directors at Large Anne Bové, RN, MSN, BC, CCRN, ANP anne.bove@nysna.org Judith Cutchin, RN judith.cutchin@nysna.org Seth Dressekie, RN, MSN, NP seth.dressekie@nysna.org Jacqueline Gilbert, RN jackie.gilbert@nysna.org Robin Krinsky, RN robin.krinsky@nysna.org Lilia V. Marquez, RN lilia.marquez@nysna.org Nella Pineda-Marcon, RN, BC nella.pineda-marcon@nysna.org Verginia Stewart, RN verginia.stewart@nysna.org Marva Wade, RN marva.wade@nysna.org Regional Directors Southeastern Yasmine Beausejour, RN yasmine.beausejour@nysna.org Southern Sean Petty, RN sean.petty@nysna.org Central Marion Enright, RN marion.enright@nysna.org Lower Hudson/NJ Jayne Cammisa, RN, BSN jayne.cammisa@nysna.org Western Chiqkena Collins, RN chiqkena.collins@nysna.org Eastern Vacant Executive Editor Pat Kane, RN, CNOR Executive Director Editorial offices located at: 131 W 33rd St., New York, NY 10001 Phone: 212-785-0157 Email: communications@nysna.org Website: www.nysna.org Subscription rate: $33 per year ISSN (Print) 1934-7588/ISSN (Online) 1934-7596 ©2020, All rights reserved
“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of light, it was the season of darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair.”
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his opening paragraph of Charles Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities describes the climate in Paris during the period of the French Revolution…but it could easily describe the mood of our nation today. Dickens described the oppression of the “common people” by a tyrannical French aristocracy through unjust laws, unfair taxation and complete disregard for the poor, feeding outrage that ultimately erupted into revolution. Historically, there has never been a “nice” way to overturn oppression. Unions and community organizations spend loads of resources on encouraging members and neighbors to vote, supporting electoral campaigns based on promises made, lobbying these same legislators once elected, and mobilizing people to apply pressure via public demonstrations, mass meetings and hearings, petitions, letters, social and mass media. So here is a question, built on a real issue in the state of New York: ensuring that the ultra-rich pay their fair share of taxes, as opposed to squeezing wage earners (such as nurses, our spouses, family members and neighbors). Surveys and polls indicate broad public support (>90%) for tax reform that would do just that—not a new idea, by the way, as the tax tables in previous decades were far more egalitarian, and there was no deficit such as we are seeing today. Numerous state elected representatives also support the idea and have drafted legislation to this effect. Fair taxation would negate the draconian cuts that have closed hospitals, laid off employees, crowded our Emergency Rooms, forced us to work harder with fewer resources—but also harmed peoples’ access to quality education, affordable housing, better roads, parks, nutrition and all the
social determinants of health. As we have seen in the pandemic, the absence of a central organized public health infrastructure and a system built on patients, not profits, is also a necessity for meeting the health needs of our communities and the basic needs of caregivers, such as our own members. But the legislature shut down and none of these bills—that would absolutely save lives, as well as enhancing the quality of all of our lives—went forward. Where is the justice in this? On May 25, 2020, Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin arrested George Floyd, a suspect in a report that an individual used a $20 counterfeit bill. To the horror of onlookers, Chauvin kneeled on Floyd, who posed no threat, with his knee on his neck, ignoring pleas that he couldn’t breathe, even continuing to do so for up to 3 minutes after he became unresponsive. His pulseless body was then tossed into an ambulance. Video recording and viral sharing has enabled the public to view such horrific scenes, understanding that incidents like this, not recorded, may very well be more numerous, even endemic. The Floyd murder set off a series of national protests that continue to escalate as I write this. The outrage and anger this incident precipitated was smoldering, not only due to an increase in attacks and deaths on behalf of white supremacist vigilantes and individual racist cops in the recent period, but due to the much broader historic and current institutionalized racism that poisons America and continues to kill and maim Black people in our country. COVID-19 has dramatically hit communities of color, both in New York and across the nation. Every
single social determinant of health impacts these same communities in total disproportion to their percentage of population. There isn’t a single statistic available that counters the argument that institutionalized racism is a critical precursor to the suffering, politically, economically, socially, in life and in death, of non-white people in America. Is anyone surprised that the death of George Floyd recalls memories of lynchings of Black people in the previous century? That the hysterical “threat” a white female dog walker in Central Park called in to 911 of “an African-American male” (a mild-mannered bird-watcher at that!) recalled memories of Carolyn Bryant Donham’s report of being harassed by 14 year-old Emmet Till in 1955? 60 years after the tortured, beaten body of young Till was pulled from the river, murdered by Ms. Donham’s husband and friends (cleared by a jury of their peers), she recanted her testimony. Empathy is defined as “the ability to sense other people’s emotions, coupled with the ability to imagine what someone else might be thinking or feeling.” We learn all about empathy in Nursing School. It’s how we best care for our patients. Can we apply this to our society? Speaking about race and racism in our country is “uncomfortable” for some people. Many Americans would like to think that we live in a “post-racial” society. We don’t. Democracy is defined as government in which power and civic responsibility are exercised by all adult citizens, directly, or through their freely elected representatives. Continued on page 12
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Racism
The unaddressed public health crisis
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s I write this column, this nation is confronting a racial crisis of historic proportions. We have all seen the footage—more than eight horrifying minutes of it: a white police officer’s knee on the neck of a dying African American man. There is no question in any of our minds that Police Officer Chauvin killed George Floyd in a brutal, inhuman act. Add to that, the recent killings of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, Tony McDade and others—all heartbreaking and terrifying reminders of the pervasive racial injustice with which we live. What we are witnessing is the most recent manifestation of the ongoing oppression that pre-dates the founding of this country. We see it today in the repeated tragedy of police brutality. We see it in the disproportionate sentencing and incarceration of minorities. Blacks are incarcerated at five times the rate of whites. They are 12% of the U.S. population but 33% of the U.S. prison population.
Accountability for inequity We see it in federal, state and local policies that create harmful disparities between the more affluent white communities and communities of color. We see it in the way our resources are allocated— plenty of government money for policing and to build prisons, while budgets for healthcare, education and other supportive services are slashed. Two and one-half billion dollars cut from Medicaid in New York so far this year. We see it in our paychecks. Black Americans earn less than whites at every comparable education level, and black Americans accumulate less wealth over time. The typical black household has one-tenth the wealth of a typical white household, according to Federal Reserve data. It is incumbent on all of us to ask: where does accountability for this inequity lie? Add to that, the treacherous COVID-19 crisis. For New York’s working families, especially for those
in communities of color, the hardships caused by the virus have been particularly severe and enduring. While most of New York’s workforce went “on pause”, many people of color—overrepresented among healthcare aides, grocery store clerks, emergency dispatchers and public transportation employees—overwhelmingly went to work. Nationally, black workers make up 17% of front-line workers.
Another COVID surge In New York City, the virus’ epicenter, the effects of COVID-19 could be measured by zip code with low wage workers, immigrants and people of color having higher rates of exposure, infection, hospitalization, and mortality than higher income and white populations. For African Americans in New York City, the economic hardships of the COVID crisis have been especially difficult to weather, and mortality rates from the virus are twice that of whites. According to the New York Times, “Black Americans … have far fewer resources available to ride it out, given that they earn less money and have had less ability to build wealth. And they are dying at higher rates from the virus than whites.” With another COVID surge anticipated, the shock waves of virus and unemployment and dislocation and hardship keep coming, with urban communities of color in its direct path. Rural communities upstate are also bracing for the coronavirus, as scientists predict an outbreak in these communities this summer. As nurses, we know first-hand that these inequalities manifest themselves in many ways in the safety net hospitals, which provide more care to communities of color and the poor. There is less access to resources for both staff and patients, and ongoing lack of funding to maintain operations during a crisis, yet wealthier hospital systems continue to receive the lion’s share of financial aid from the government. All things we have seen these last three months and are fighting to correct.
The safety net hospitals in New York have higher numbers of healthcare workers who are themselves people of color and more vulnerable to the pandemic. “Our nation’s African American community is going through an extremely painful experience, pain that has been inflicted upon this community repeatedly throughout history and is magnified by mass media and repeated deaths,” said Dan Gillison, CEO, National
Alliance on Mental Health. “Racism is a public health crisis.” A health crisis we have not begun to meaningfully address.
We must all stand up Our union has been to the frontlines of COVID-19, and we will bring that energy and perseverance to the fight for policing and criminal justice reform; we will put it into immediate action in calling for revenue and resources to improve education, create good jobs, rebuild small businesses and more; and we will continue to raise our voices against Medicaid cuts and for a more just and equitable healthcare system. Continuing the status quo is denial and, by extension, the acceptance of racism. We must all stand up for these basic human rights and do our part to heal the deep scars of inequality.
By Pat Kane, RN, NYSNA Executive Director
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New York Nurse may 2020
The NYSNA
Reopening Standards Enhanced PPE Standards To ensure the safety of both staff and patients, every healthcare facility in New York must take the following safety measures before reopening elective procedures.
l New N95 respirators must be available for every patient care session with COVID-positive patients or PUI’s, as well as at all points of contact with patients or the public throughout the hospital. Replacements, without rationing, will be provided when PPE is soiled or contaminated. Proper fit testing will happen prior to use for all staff, and will be repeated prior to using another type of respirator. Results will be provided immediately. l Gowns, face shields, coveralls, head coverings, booties, gloves and any other necessary PPE will also be available on all units. Replacements, without rationing, will be provided after each patient care session with a COVID-positive patient or PUI, or when PPE is soiled or contaminated. l Under no circumstance will PPE need to be reused unless designed/ manufactured to be decontaminated and reused. There can be no “decontamination” or
“sterilization” of N95 respirators that are designed for single use. l Surgical masks will be required for all patients and visitors, as well as hospital staff who have no contact with the public. l To protect against supply chain disruptions, the hospital will build and maintain a sufficient onsite PPE stockpile for 90 days of operation at enhanced conventional capacity guidelines. NYSNA committee members will be able to view, assess, and track progress on stockpiling upon request, and the Employer will make it a standing agenda item for all Labor Management and Professional Practice Committee meetings. l The facility will engage in a longterm purchasing and procurement plan to incorporate reusable respiratory protection such as elastomeric respirators and Powered Air Purifying Respirators (PAPRs). This will reduce supply chain pressures and enhance resiliency for future surges.
Reporting & the Health and Safety Protocols l Implement “Covid-19 Standard Precautions” for the facility, similar to universal precautions established for bloodborne pathogens. Controls must be grounded in science, with frontline staff RNs leading the development of these standards. l The Employer will establish a Command Center Hotline to address all COVID-related policies and immediately remedy concerns such as PPE replacement issues, visitation violations, or patient masking violations. l The hospital must implement accurate COVID-19 diagnostic
testing for all patients and visitors, and have readily available ondemand diagnostic testing for staff on all shifts. l The facility must implement aggressive contact tracing protocols for all patients and employees who test positive for COVID-19 and deploy them immediately after any positive test result. l We must start ongoing hands-on Health and Safety training and education for frontline staff on all COVID-related issues.
l Nurses and other healthcare workers have a right to know what risks they’re facing when they report to work. The Employer will issue regular weekly reports to all staff, documenting essential information such as how many COVID-positive patients they are treating, levels of PPE inventory, on going plans for screening and cohorting, and the number of staff who’ve been exposed to or gotten sick from COVID-19. l The Employer will provide copies of the New York DOH Health Emergency Response Data System (HERDS) reports to NYSNA whenever produced and sent to New York State. l NYSNA and the Employer will conduct a comprehensive COVID-19 assessment
NEW YORK NURSE may 2020
Safety Plan
for New York Hospitals Robust Environmental Controls l All COVID-positive patients will be cohorted in separate units with enhanced PPE standards, and administrative controls will be established to ensure efficient cohorting of walk-ins. All patients and visitors must be tested upon entering the hospital and required to wear surgical masks. l The hospital must retain many of the current restrictions on patient visitation. Visitor policies must be clearly communicated to the public, visitors must be strictly tracked, with time restrictions on their visit, and there must be adequate non-nursing staff to enforce the policy. We cannot return to open-door unlimited visitation policies. Regular access for NYSNA reps will continue based on discussions at Labor Management meetings to ensure safety.
Right to Know that outlines the major nursing issues that arose during this crisis. l Based on this joint assessment, NYSNA and the Employer will create a surge capacity plan to address future COVID outbreaks. The parties will identify where new units will open, detail staffing needs for those new units, and plan for any training required to safely redeploy staff. l All contractually-mandated committees will resume their work, including regularly scheduled meetings according to the pre-COVID standing calendar. l All Health and Safety and Professional Practice Committees will take responsibility for documenting the hospital’s progress achieving the longer-term goals in this plan.
l Elective procedures must be phased in only as the COVID-19 census falls, and suspended automatically if it starts to rise again. All patients must be tested
24 hours prior to the procedures. COVID-specific standard precautions are instituted for operating rooms and labor and delivery. lN YSNA and the Employer will conduct assessments of the entire facility’s HVAC and environmental control system, to determine a priority list for remediation and improvement. The goal will be to use ventilation and negative air filtration more effectively during future outbreaks. Pilot projects to test out new environmental controls should be conducted throughout Summer 2020. lN YSNA and the Employer will conduct assessments of donning, doffing, and decontamination areas on remaining COVID units and make any necessary improvements to the space allocated and existing protocols. Pilot projects on converting new areas into donning/doffing spaces on COVID units and in procedural areas should be conducted Summer 2020.
Union Rights and Contracts honored by the employer. Any nurse at risk of losing vacation days or PTO because of annual accrual limits will be allowed to retain all accrued time.
l Nurses will be immediately taken off the schedule if they are confirmed COVID-positive or displaying symptoms. Nurses will be provided the full 14 days of statutory COVID-19 sick leave, as needed, without pressure to return to work unless they are medically cleared by their doctor. Additional sick time off will be granted as medically necessary.
l S taffing must be restored to preCOVID levels and all contractually mandated staffing ratios must be implemented prior to reopening elective procedures.
l All future vacation and time off requests will be granted. All canceled vacations and time off requests will be rescheduled and
lT he hospital must adhere to contract provisions around floating, with all restrictions and training requirements reinstated.
These detailed standards were developed from NYSNA’s broader reopening plan How to Move New York Forward, available online: bit.ly/reopenwithcare.
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One strong, united voice for nurses and patients
Statement by the NYSNA Board of Directors Adopted May 30, 2020 Millions of Americans have watched in horror the video footage of Minneapolis police officers killing George Floyd, an unarmed Black man, while he lay handcuffed on the ground. Police Officer Derek Chauvin, a white man, placed his knee and the full weight of his body on Floyd’s neck for nine minutes, even though Floyd was limp and unresponsive for the last three. George Floyd’s final words before he died were “I can’t breathe.” As New Yorkers, we can’t forget that Eric Garner uttered those same words, moments before he was killed by police on Staten Island, nearly six years ago. As nurses, we mourn for the hundreds of Black men and women killed by the police every year, like Breonna Taylor, an EMT studying to be a nurse in Louisville, Kentucky. Taylor was gunned down in late March after police officers barged in her apartment with a no-knock warrant. Their intended suspect, who lived somewhere else, was already in custody. NYSNA demands justice for George Floyd, for Breonna Taylor, for Eric Garner, and for all the lives and loved ones stolen by police violence. We demand an end to the racist policing that has forced millions of African Americans, Latinos, and Native Americans to live in fear, for their own lives and the lives of their children. As a union, we remain committed to dismantling the institutional racism that perpetuates violence against people of color, like the murder of Ahmaud Arbery, a Georgia resident who went out for a jog and was subsequently hunted down and executed by two white men, a former law enforcement officer and his son, after he stopped to explore a new home being built in his neighborhood. As nurses, we recognize every patient as a human being, in need of care and compassion. And we will continue to channel this empathy and equality as we fight against the bigotry, intolerance, and hate fueling current politics and feeding an armed white supremacist movement that threatens our democracy.
Becky Eisenhut, RN, and staff member, NYSNA Becky A. (Weakley) Eisenhut, 61, of Lake Moraine Road, was tragically taken from us on May 28. Becky was born on October 8, 1958 in Herkimer, received a Master’s Degree in Nursing Education from the State University of New York Institute of Technology in 2008 and was awarded the Dean’s Medallion, the highest honor in the School of Nursing and Health Systems. Early in her career, Becky worked as a Registered Nurse at both Rome Memorial Hospital and the Marcy State Hospital. Most of her career was as a dedicated
healthcare professional caring for patients with substance use disorders. In 2004, she accepted a position with the Statewide Peer Assistance for Nurses (SPAN) Program administered by NYSNA, where she most recently served as the Association’s Outreach Coordinator. Becky’s gift was her empathy and caring for others. She reached out to people in need of support and helped so many. It might be a phone call to check in, a text with words of encouragement, or a visit so that someone didn’t spend a birthday alone. Not only was she an exceptional caregiver in her
professional life, she was devoted to that role in her family life as well. Survivors include her husband, Paul M. Payson; mother, Alberta; one son, Daniel Eisenhut (Jausaun Murden) of Waterville; and one grandson, Daniel R. Eisenhut. Please share online condolences with the family at https://bit.ly/ beckyeisenhut. Memorials may be made to the Weakley Foundation, 201 Graves Road, Newport, NY 13416.
NEW YORK NURSE may 2020
Candidates endorsed by our union COVID-19
has crystallized just how important public services, the healthcare system, and government institutions are in a crisis. Who sets policy and shapes our response during the next phase of this pandemic will change New York, and the country, forever. New York has been at the epicenter of this epidemic, and as nurses we’ve seen firsthand the toll this crisis has taken on our communities. Now is the time for bold leadership, not federal foot-dragging, or cuts to New York’s healthcare and social safety net. We need elected officials who are willing to do whatever it takes to protect the health and economic security of our communities.
NYSNA is pleased to announce the following endorsements for New York’s 2020 Primary Elections. We look forward to working with each of them to ensure nurses have a seat at the table as we begin to Move New York Forward. Special thanks to NYSNA’s Political Action Committee, for all their hard work reviewing and interviewing dozens of candidates who requested our endorsement. For more information about NYSNA’s political and legislative priorities, or to request an endorsement, contact endorsements@ nysna.org.
June 16: Last date to postmark absentee ballot application
New York primary elections will occur on June 23, 2020. In order to protect New Yorkers from COVID-19, the state has made mail-in voting available to all registered voters for the June 23 primary. However, you can still vote in person on Election Day, and participate in early voting.
Use the Voter Registration and Poll Site Search at voterlookup. elections.ny.gov to check your voter registration, find your poll site location and hours, and see what Congressional and State legislature districts you belong to. The deadline to register to vote in the June 23 primary election is
May 29, 2020. If you have not registered to vote by May 29, you can still vote in the General Election in November if you mail your application by October 9, 2020 or deliver it in-person by October 10, 2020. You can also register online at www.ny.gov/services/register-vote.
To vote in person:
To vote by mail:
l Use the Voter Registration and
Anyone registered to vote in New York State can request and submit an absentee ballot. The Board of Elections will also automatically mail every eligible voter an absentee ballot application. You can: l Pick up an absentee ballot application at your County Board of Elections. Find your County Board at www.elections.ny.gov/ CountyBoards.html l Download a PDF of the NYS Absentee Ballot Application Form at www.elections.ny.gov l New York City residents only can also request an Absentee Ballot online at nycabsentee.com
nition of “temporary illness” has been expanded to cover the risk of contracting the coronavirus while voting. That’s how New York has been able to expand absentee voting to everyone. Once you complete your ballot application, mail, email, or fax it to your County Board of Elections by June 16. You have until June 22 to apply in-person for an absentee ballot at your County Board. Now you’re ready to vote! Fill out your ballot according to the directions included, using black or blue ink. Be extra careful, go slowly, and read everything. Then, mail it to your local Board of Elections no later than June 22. Congratulations! By voting, you’ve just made your voice heard, in a time when our democracy needs nurses’ leadership more than ever.
Even if you’re not sick, you should mark “temporary illness” on your application form as the reason you’re requesting an absentee ballot. This is because the defi-
May 29: Last day to register to vote, in-person or by mail (Must be received by city BOE by June 3). June 13: Early voting begins
How to vote during COVID-19
Poll Site Search above to find your polling location. New York City residents can also go to nyc.pollsitelocator.com l Early voting will take place each day from Saturday, June 13– Sunday, June 23 l Election Day is Tuesday, June 23, 2020
KEY DEADLINES
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June 21: Last day for early voting June 22: Last day to apply inperson for an absentee ballot Last date to postmark absentee ballot (must be received by city BOE by June 30) June 23: Election Day! Last day to deliver absentee ballot IN-PERSON to local County Board of Elections
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US Congress
CD 2 Jackie Gordon
We need elected officials who are willing to do whatever it takes to protect the health and economic security of our communities.
Jackie Gordon is running for Congress in Long Island’s District 2. Gordon is a combat veteran and a retired high school guidance counselor. She has made affordable and accessible healthcare a top issue in her campaign. “Our nurses provide critical, lifesaving care to our community every day,” she says. “I’m proud to stand with them in advocating for every American’s right to quality, affordable healthcare.”
CD 7 Nydia Velázquez Congresswoman Nydia Velazquez is running for reelection in Congressional District 7, encompassing parts of Brooklyn, Lower Manhattan, and Queens. She has served New Yorkers in Congress for fourteen terms. Velazquez is championing the federal HEROES Act and its provisions of hazard pay for frontline workers and additional funding to fortify New York’s healthcare system. She is also a supporter of Medicare for All, saying that “healthcare is a fundamental human right, not a privilege for the wealthy.”
CD 12 Carolyn Maloney Carolyn Maloney was the first woman to be elected to represent New York’s 12th Congressional District in 1992, and NYSNA is proud to support her campaign for reelection. In 2010, Maloney was an ally in passing the Affordable Care Act. She’s also used her seat to establish legislation providing for 9/11 first responders, residents, and workers; and to ensure annual mammograms for women on Medicare. Our demands for unleashing the Defense Production Act (DPA) and the HEROES Act have been taken up by Maloney during the COVID crisis.
CD 5 Gregory Meeks Gregory Meeks is running for reelection to Congress in District 5, where he’s represented Southeast Queens since 1998. He also serves as Chair to the Queens County Democratic Party. Meeks is a cosponsor of Medicare for All legislation in the House. During the COVID-19 crisis, he’s advocated for greater support of New Yorkers, and joined with nurses to call on President Trump to invoke the Defense Production Act to get PPE to the frontlines. In May, he joined NYSNA nurses on a virtual town hall discussing racial disparities during the COVID crisis
CD 9 Yvette Clarke Congresswoman Yvette Clarke is running for reelection to represent the people of Brooklyn’s Ninth Congressional District. Clarke has been an important voice on the issues nurses care about. She voted for the federal HEROES Act; is a strong supporter of Medicare for All; has advocated for a stronger response to the opioid epidemic; and has fought to address disparities black women face in healthcare.
CD 13 Adriano Espaillat Adriano Espaillat is running for reelection in New York Thirteenth’s Congressional District, which he’s represented since 2017. Espaillat has defended the Affordable Care Act and joined as a cosponsor of HR 676, the Medicare for All Act. He’s been a strong advocate for better public transportation, and during the COVID-19 crisis has highlighted how underfunding of public transportation has endangered the health of essential workers who must commute to work.
CD 6 Grace Meng Grace Meng is running for reelection to Congress, where she’s currently serving her fourth term representing District 6 in Queens. During COVID-19, Meng led a New York City congressional delegation calling on the President to address the shortage of PPE and medical technology. She also voted to pass the HEROES Act in the House, which would provide vital protections to nurses and other frontline workers.
CD 10 Jerry Nadler NYSNA is supporting Jerry Nadler’s campaign for reelection to represent New York’s 10th Congressional District. Before being elected to the House of Representatives in 1992, he served in the New York State Assembly for 16 years. In the aftermath of September 11, Nadler proved to be a tireless advocate for health and safety issues during times of crisis. This has continued during the COVID-19 pandemic. He recently introduced the Pandemic Heroes Compensation Act, modeled after the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund and intended to provide funds for essential workers who get sick or die due to COVID-19.
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NYS Senate
CD 14 Alexandria
Ocasio-Cortez
NYSNA is proud to support Alexandria Ocasio Cortez’s bid for reelection after her historic first term in Congress serving New York’s 14th District in the Bronx and Queens. Ocasio-Cortez has been a fighter for Medicare for All, healthcare justice, and union workers since day one. She also joined NYSNA members in a virtual town hall on the COVID-19 crisis on April 9, amplifying our call for President Trump to use the Defense Production Act to ramp up PPE production, and went on to advocate for the HEROES Act. She’s been a consistent and powerful voice for nurses, and we are excited to support her continued leadership.
CD 17 David Buchwald
SD 7 Anna Kaplan
David Buchwald is running for Congress in District 17 of the Hudson Valley. He previously served in New York’s State Assembly, where he supported safe staffing and fought against policies that would benefit insurance companies over our safety-net hospitals. Most recently, he spoke at a candlelight vigil at Westchester Medical Center, honoring the sacrifices nurses have made during the pandemic. “It’s a true honor to have the support of NYSNA,” he says. “In Congress, I’ll fight for national Paid Sick Leave, protect workers’ rights, and advocate for greater access to healthcare for everyone.”
Anna Kaplan is running for reelection to State Senate in SD 7 of Nassau County. She was first elected to her seat in 2018, making her the first political refugee and Iranian-American elected to the New York State senate. She is a cosponsor of the Safe Staffing for Quality Care Act that nurses have championed to protect patients and the practice.
Endorsed candidates running unopposed CD 8 Hakeem Jeffries CD 11 Max Rose CD 21 Tedra Cobb CD 26 Brian Higgins SD 4 Christine Pellegrino SD 20 Zellnor Myrie SD 22 Andrew
Gounardes SD 33 Gustavo Rivera SD 35 Andrea StewartSD 10 James Sanders Jr.
CD 27 Nate McMurray CD 15 Michael Blake Michael Blake is running for Congress in New York’s Congressional District 15 representing the Bronx. Previous to his run for Congress, Michael Blake proved to be a NYSNA ally in the state assembly. He was a cosponsor to safe staffing legislation and was a proactive fighter for nurses during the COVID crisis, voting against the counterproductive cuts to healthcare in this year’s budget.
Nate McMurray is running to represent Western New York’s 27th Congressional District. He first ran in 2018 and lost by less than 1% of the vote, putting him on a strong footing for this election. He is an advocate for Medicare for All and determined to fight predatory pharmaceutical and insurance companies. He is an ally to organized labor and a proponent of workers’ rights, fair wages, and good jobs.
James Sanders Jr. is running for reelection to District 10 of Southeast Queens, which he’s represented in the State Senate since 2013. He is a cosponsor of safe staffing legislation, and of the New York Health Act, which would establish universal healthcare in the state. During the COVID crisis, he’s promoted legislation to make coronavirus testing free to uninsured New Yorkers; and sponsored the Nursing Home Protection Act of 2020 stipulating more testing and sufficient PPE for longterm care staff.
Cousins SD 42 Jen Metzger SD 60 Sean Ryan AD 27 Daniel Rosenthal AD 44 Robert Carroll AD 52 Jo Anne Simon AD 55 Latrice Walker AD 59 Jaime Williams AD 60 Charles Barron AD 61 Charles Fall AD 69 Daniel O’Donnell AD 72 Carmen De La Rosa AD 74 Harvey Epstein AD 80 Nathalia
Fernandez CD 16 Jamaal Bowman Jamaal Bowman is running for Congress in District 16 of the Bronx and Yonkers. In addition to being an ardent supporter of Medicare for all, Bowman has demonstrated that he shows up for nurses in times of crisis. He joined our April protest outside St Joseph Medical Center in Yonkers, amplifying our demands for more PPE and a stronger federal response. “The federal government’s responsibility here is to respond, so I don’t want to let them off the hook,” he said. We believe Bowman will bring needed urgency to nurses’ issues in Congress.
AD 83 Carl Heastie AD 112 Joe Seeman SD 12 Michael Gianaris Michael Gianaris, who is Deputy Majority Leader in the NYS Senate, is running for reelection in Queens’ District 12. Gianaris has joined NYSNA in our efforts to pass the New York Health Act. He is also an advocate for early and vote-by-mail, which has proved to be an important public-health measure during the COVID-19 crisis. Continued on page 10
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NYS Senate Continued from page 9
SD 34 Alessandra Biaggi
Now is the time for bold leadership, not federal footdragging, or cuts to New York’s healthcare and social safety net.
SD 13 Jessica Ramos
SD 23 Diane Savino
Jessica Ramos is running for reelection after a strong first term to represent NYS Senate District 13. Ramos has been a consistent advocate for NYSNA’s legislative priorities, as a cosponsor of the New York Health Act, Safe Staffing, and protection for employees subjected to abusive work environments. She also voted against cuts to healthcare and other vital services during the COVID-19 pandemic; and advocates for COVID-19 to be classified as an occupational disease, which would help nurses exposed at work protect themselves and win workers’ compensation. As chair of the Labor Committee, she’s been a staunch defender of working people and unions.
Diane Savino is running for reelection in the 23rd District, encompassing parts of Staten Island and southern Brooklyn, which she has represented since 2005. Savino has been a forceful leader throughout her time in Albany, and this has only continued during the COVID crisis. She joined fellow senators in calling for a statewide nursing home taskforce after seeing how long-term care facilities were failed during the pandemic. This May, she joined NYSNA Executive Director Pat Kane in a Staten Island car rally for essential workers, where she spoke about the need to advocate for the most vulnerable in our workforce. Finally, she is cosponsoring legislation to make exposure to COVID19 an occupational disease.
Alessandra Biaggi is running for reelection in District 34, which includes parts of the Bronx and Queens. Biaggi has been a strong ally to nurses by cosponsoring safe staffing legislation and the New York Health Act. She also took a stand against hospital closures in the wake of COVID-19, sponsoring a bill that would place a moratorium on closures through 2023. Finally, she has been a vocal critic of this year’s cuts to healthcare and public services, lamenting that “We have cast a dark shadow over our communities in their greatest moment of need, by delivering a budget that puts millions of New Yorkers in harm’s way and fails to meet the needs of our healthcare system under these extraordinary circumstances.”
SD 36 Jamaal Bailey
SD 18 Julia Salazar NYSNA is excited to support Julia Salazar’s campaign for reelection in Brooklyn’s District 18. Salazar is a safe staffing cosponsor and has been a leader in fighting for universal healthcare. She voted against this year’s state budget, due to its massive cuts to healthcare and other services vital to fighting the pandemic. “We can’t continue to balance state budgets on the backs of working people,” she argues. She has also been an active resource for H&H nurses at Woodhull Hospital in her district throughout the crisis.
SD 31 Robert Jackson Robert Jackson is running to be reelected in District 31. He has joined members in NYSNA town halls throughout the COVID crisis, and has helped pressure hospital administrations and fellow elected officials to adopt our priorities. In the legislature, he is a voice for the New York Health Act, safe staffing, and most recently, classifying COVID-19 as an occupational disease for which nurses deserve workers compensation.
Jamaal Bailey is running for reelection to represent New York’s 36th State Senate District, where he’s represented Bronx residents since 2016. Bailey has been a dependable voice for nurses in the Senate, supporting safe staffing and the New York Health Act. He is also committed to keeping our hospitals open and serving the community, recently sponsoring legislation that would place a moratorium on hospital closures through 2023.
SD 46 Michelle Hinchey
SD 32 Luis Sepulveda SD 21 Kevin Parker Kevin Parker is running for reelection in Brooklyn’s District 21. He was first elected in 2002. Parker is a cosponsor of safe staffing legislation in the Senate.
Luis Sepúlveda was first elected to represent the 32nd Senate District in 2018, and is now running for reelection. He’s been a consistent ally of nurses in the senate, supporting safe staffing and universal healthcare.
Michelle Hinchey is running for NYS Senate in the Capital Region’s District 46. She is committed to fighting for affordable healthcare, especially in longterm care, bringing good “green jobs” to upstate New York, and protecting access to fresh air, clean water, and safe food for the health of our communities. To nurses, she says “I promise to stand with you and fight for safe staffing and better wages because you are our true heroes.”
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NYS Assembly
AD 43 Diana Richardson AD 57 Walter Mosley AD 36 Aravella Simotas AD 2 Laura Jens-Smith Laura Jens-Smith is running for NYS Assembly in District 2 in Suffolk County. Jens-Smith previously worked as a cardiac care and recovery room nurse, and her priorities reflect that experience. She’s committed to reducing the cost of prescription drugs and making high-quality healthcare accessible for everyone. In 2019, she received the Long Island Federation of Labor Leadership Award for her work on behalf of organized labor and working families.
Aravella Simotas is running for reelection to NYS Assembly from Queens’ District 36. When she was first elected in 2010, she became the first woman to ever hold the seat. Simotas has been a leader on healthcare issues, not only supporting safe staffing and universal healthcare, but also authoring landmark legislation improving women’s access to prenatal care and pushing for measures to lower infant mortality rates. That leadership has continued during the COVID crisis, during which she’s sponsored legislation making COVID-19 an occupational disease, opposed counterproductive cuts to healthcare, and advocated hazard pay for frontline workers.
NYSNA is proud to endorse Assemblywoman Diana Richardson for reelection. Her record representing Brooklyn’s 43rd Assembly District since 2015 has been consistently on the side of unions and working families. She was crucial in passing historic affordable housing measures in 2019, standing up to powerful real estate interests in the process. It’s a good indicator she can also stand up to bigwig hospital associations and insurance companies—and her support for Safe Staffing and the New York Health Act shows she’s ready to fight for RNs in Albany.
Walter Mosley is running for reelection in District 57 in Brooklyn, which he’s represented since 2013. Mosley has a track record of advocating for Brooklyn communities—helping to make sure safety net hospitals remain open for care, and addressing the social determinants of health such as affordable housing and criminal justice reform. He is an advocate of our legislative priorities including the New York Health Act and safe staffing.
AD 65 Yuh-Line Niou AD 50 Joe Lentol
AD 34 Michael
DenDekker
Michael DenDekker is running for reelection in District 34, which he has represented since 2009. DenDekker has used his position in the Assembly to amplify NYSNA’s demands, supporting safe staffing and the New York Health Act. Recently, he’s cosponsored legislation classifying COVID-19 as an occupational disease, standing up for the many frontline nurses exposed at work.
AD 39 Catalina Cruz Catalina Cruz is running for reelection in the 39th Assembly District in Queens. Cruz is a co-sponsor for Safe Staffing and the NY Health Act and has been an advocate for Medicare-for-All. She grew up as a DREAMer and is dedicated to fighting for nurses and her community.
Joe Lentol is running for reelection to NYS Assembly in District 50, where he’s represented North Brooklyn residents since 1972. Lentol has been a steadfast ally to nurses and working people throughout his career. He is a proponent of safe staffing and for a universal healthcare program for New York. During the coronavirus crisis, he’s been proactive in proposing measures to improve conditions in long term care, and is cosponsoring a bill classifying COVID-19 as an occupational disease.
Yuh-Line Niou is running for reelection to the Assembly in Manhattan’s District 65. When she assumed office in 2017 she became the first AsianAmerican to represent the district. Niou has championed our priorities, from cosponsoring safe staffing, rejecting cuts to our lifesaving public services, and supporting healthcare for all. She’s also pushed for reforms to reduce the influence of corporate interests like insurance companies in Albany.
AD 40 Ronald Kim
AD 35 Jeffrion Aubry Jeffrion Aubry is running for reelection in District 35, which he’s served in the Assembly since 1992. Aubry has elevated NYSNA’s priorities in the Assembly, cosponsoring safe staffing legislation and the New York Health Act providing universal coverage in the state.
Ronald Kim is running for reelection Queens’ Assembly District 40. When he was first elected in 2012 he became the first Korean-American elected in New York State. He has been a steadfast advocate of nurses’ issues, cosponsoring safe staffing and universal healthcare legislation. During the COVID crisis he has demonstrated unmatched leadership. He was one of the first officials to sound the alarm about the crisis in long-term care; has supported local initiatives to distribute PPE and other vital supplies; and pushed for a top-tier contact tracing program.
AD 70 Inez Dickens AD 51 Felix Ortiz Félix Ortiz is running for reelection in Brooklyn’s Assembly District 51. He first assumed office in 1995. Ortiz has been a supporter of our long-term priorities such as safe staffing and the New York Health Act. Recently, he’s cosponsored efforts to deem COVID-19 an occupational disease and improve protections for frontline workers.
Inez Dickens is running for reelection to NYS Assembly in Harlem’s District 70. Before winning her seat in the Assembly in 2016, Dickens served Harlem residents in the city council. Dickens is a cosponsor of safe staffing and the New York Health Act.
Continued on page 12
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NYS Assembly Continued from page 11
AD 75 Richard Gottfried AD 92 Thomas Abinanti AD 71 Al taylor
AD 87 Karines Reyes NYSNA is proud to endorse one of our own, Karines Reyes, RN to represent District 87 in the New York Assembly. Before her election to the Assembly in 2019, Reyes was a leader in our union, serving as vice chair of the bargaining unit at Einstein Hospital. She has brought that frontline activist energy to her role as a lawmaker, voting against destructive healthcare cuts, and leading the charge for safe staffing and the New York Health Act. During the coronavirus crisis, she returned to Montefiore Hospital to battle COVID-19. Now more than ever we need representatives who aren’t afraid to stand with us on the frontlines.
Al Taylor is running for reelection in the 71st Assembly District in Manhattan. Taylor is a co-sponsor for Safe Staffing and the NY Health Act.
Richard Gottfried is running for reelection to NYS Assembly in Manhattan’s District 75. Gottfried has been a leader on healthcare issues. He not only supports safe staffing and the New York Health Act; but has also introduced various legislation improving access to prenatal care for low-income women; providing free coverage to low-income adults; and empowering patients to designate health-care proxies. He consistently works to increase Medicaid funding and has opposed the millions in hospital cuts introduced during the pandemic.
AD 100 Aileen Gunther
AD 73 Dan Quart Dan Quart is running for reelection to NYS Assembly in District 73, where he was first elected in 2011. He has used his seat to advocate for safe staffing and the New York Health Act. In the wake of COVID-19, he’s advocated for frontline workers’ right to workers’ compensation when they’re exposed to coronavirus at work.
Tom Abinanti is running for re-election in the 92nd Assembly District in Westchester County. He has been a long-standing ally to NYSNA members, working closely with NYSNA leaders at Westchester Medical Center to push the hospital on a number issues. He is a cosponsor of our safe staffing bill and the New York Health Act.
AD 84 Amanda Septimo Amanda Septimo is running to represent Bronx Assembly District 84. Septimo is a union organizer who has been a champion of the South Bronx, especially as it has suffered disproportionately from the effects of COVID-19. She is a believer in addressing the social determinants of health, advocating for high-quality affordable housing, better public transportation, fully funded public education, and greater rights at work, so that New York is healthier and more resilient.
Aileen Gunther, an RN with 23 years experience, is running for reelection to New York’s 100th Assembly District. Gunther has naturally been a champion for the New York Health Act and safe staffing. She’s also been tireless in ensuring that upstate New York is not left out of the coronavirus response, calling for more PPE in the region’s hospitals and long-term care facilities, and ensuring there is sufficient testing before a full reopening.
What is justice? Continued from page 2
But that doesn’t seem to always work for us either, as exemplified by the earlier example of fair taxation. Critical Thinking is another concept sprinkled throughout all nursing curricula and our employers love to say they support it—but their actions prove otherwise. Being a nurse feels more and more like being an assembly line worker in an industrial plant. Innovation,
unless it saves money, is frowned upon. These contradictions pervade our society—but we don’t have to be victimized by them. We can choose to engage, communicate and empathize with one another. We can explore the ways in which we can use the democratic process so that it works for us. We can use our critical thinking skills to question the rhetoric and manipulation
that those in power are so adept at utilizing. Literary critics describe the moral themes of A Tale of Two Cities as the possibility of redemption and the importance of compassion. Dickens proposes that the way to break the cycle of exploitation and abuse of power is to apply the principles of justice and mercy. Can we do that? Or, at least, can we try?
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In Memoriam
A tribute to fallen nurses Maria ‘Bambi’ Roaquin, RN Maria Roaquin, affectionately known as “Bambi” by her friends and family, was a critical care nurse and active NYSNA member at Hudson Valley Hospital, where she worked for the last decade. She passed away from COVID-19 on May 22, 2020. As a nurse, Roaquin was following in her mother’s footsteps. Her mother, Elizabeth Leighton, immigrated to the U.S. from the Philippines in the 1960s to work as a nurse and was also a long-time NYSNA member. Roaquin also worked at a dialysis clinic in Yorktown Heights, New York. She will be sorely missed by her colleagues and friends, who organized a touching candlelight memorial for her on the riverfront in Peekskill on May 28th.
Evelyn OchoaCelano, RN Evelyn OchoaCelano was a PACU nurse and NYSNA member at Lincoln Hospital until she retired at the end of last year. She worked for New York Health and Hospitals for 37 years, including working for several years at ColerGoldwater before joining the staff at Lincoln Hospital. She passed away from COVID-19 on May 13, 2020 just three days after her 63rd birthday. She will be remembered by the entire Health and Hospitals nursing family for her dedication and decades of public service to some of New York’s neediest patients.
Renee French, RN Renee French was an OR nurse at New York Presbyterian, where she worked since 2009. She was an active NYSNA member, serving on the union’s professional practice committee, participating in contract campaigns, and more recently volunteering for the NYP COVID Action Team. Renee passed away on May 19, 2020 and is survived by her teenage daughter Jaya.
Irene (Rene) Burgonio, RN Irene (Rene) Burgonio became a NYSNA member in 2003, when she started working as a hemodialysis nurse. She was a beloved, long-time leader at Long Island College Hospital before it closed, and more recently had been working at Fresenius in Brooklyn. She passed away on May 9, 2020, at fifty-four years old.
Rose Zubko, RN Rose Zubko was a longtime NYSNA member who started working at St. Joseph Hospital in 1985, back when it was known as Mid-Island Hospital. She started as a part-time admission nurse and was on the IV team. As her children got older she took a full time position, spending the last 20 years in the PACU. Rose also served as LBU Chair for many years. She retired from the hospital but was still working per diem before passing away on May 8, 2020, at seventy-one years of age.
Mavis Charles, RN Mavis Charles, a native of Guyana, started working as an RN at Long Island College Hospital in 1999, and was an active NYSNA member there until it closed. She was sixty-three years old when she passed away on May 12, 2020.
Svetlana Vinokur, RN Svetlana Vinokur was a 56-year old obstetrics nurse and active NYSNA member at Coney Island Hospital, part of the NYC Health and Hospitals system. Svetlana passed away from COVID-19 on May 1, 2020. She will be missed by niece Olga Greenway, as well as many other family members, colleagues, and friends.
Erwin Lambrento, RN Erwin Lambrento was an ER nurse at Elmhurst Hospital, part of the NYC Health and Hospitals system. He was an active NYSNA member and served there for more than two decades. A native of the Philippines, Erwin was known to brighten up many colleagues’ and patients’ evenings working the night shift. He passed away on May 9, 2020 at fifty-nine years old. Erwin is survived by his wife, Aurora Ibera-Lambrento, a retired respiratory therapist, as well as his son Sigmund and daughter Cara.
Gresmor BlackmanDouglas, RN Gresmor BlackmanDouglas was an RN and an active NYSNA member in the surgical intensive care unit at Maimonides Medical Center in Brooklyn. Sadly, Gresmor lost her life in a horrific single-vehicle accident in North Valley Stream on May 3, on her way to the hospital to work on the front lines. Gresmore started working at Maimonides in 1999, and spent the past 18 years in the ICU.
Azinet Pudpud, RN Azinet Pudpud, RN started working at Lincoln Hospital in 1995, most recently working in the Neonatal ICU. Azinet passed away on April 27, 2020, on the eve of her 62nd birthday. She will be sorely missed by colleagues.
Virdree Burns, Jr., RN Virdree Burns Jr., a registered nurse for the past 26 years, passed away from COVID-19 on April 19. Virdree became a NYSNA member in 2002 while working for the NY Department of Sanitation. More recently, Virdree started working at Wellcare. He is survived by two sisters and one nephew.
Stephen Marrone, EdD, RN-BC, NEA-BC, CTN-A Stephen Marrone worked as Associate Professor of Nursing at Long Island University, and he also taught nursing education at Columbia University’s Teachers College. Stephen was a NYSNA member from 1999-2006, when he was an Educational Specialist in Perioperative Nursing Services at the Mount Sinai Hospital.
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Around the state Staten Island
Caravan runs on solidarity
O
n May 17, NYSNA joined with more than a dozen unions and community organizations in a car procession across Staten Island to demand rights for all essential and excluded workers in New York State. Nurses have seen how this community was hit hard by COVID-19. For these workers the pandemic was a crisis inside an ongoing health and safety crisis—caused by economic and housing insecurity, lack of healthcare access, and harmful workplace conditions. Yet many, especially immigrant workers, remain excluded from crisis pay, paid family leave, health and safety protections, and Congressional relief.
NYSNA Executive Director Pat Kane, RN, on her home turf.
Traveling across Staten Island SIUH nurse solidarity
The spirited car caravan started by saluting nurses and their colleagues at Staten Island University Hospital, then traveled across Staten Island to celebrate bus drivers at the Yukon Bus Depot; next were Verizon workers who help keep kids connected to remote learning; EZ-Pass employees on South Avenue followed; and warehouse workers at the Amazon Warehouse was also on the route. It ended at the headquarters of La Colmena, which organizes day laborers, domestic workers, and other low-wage immigrant workers on Staten Island. Via Zoom, NYSNA Executive Director Pat Kane, RN, spoke to our allies, connecting our Reopening Platform with the urgent needs of essential and excluded workers: “We’re facing a situation that we all realize is a very bleak future if our elected officials don’t step up and provide relief for the hardest hit communities. We are standing together today with all workers to say: we need a safe reopening, a reopening based on science, but we also need economic relief in our communities now.” La Colmena’s Executive Director Yesenia Mata explained what nurses’ and other unions’ solidarity means to excluded immigrant workers: “The government did
exclude the immigrant worker. But it’s more important and powerful to the immigrant community to see that today the immigrant worker is included with all the unions on Staten Island. When I told the day laborers and domestic workers they were going to be part of this procession, they were all very excited. Because that’s who they care about. They said, ‘If the government forgot about us, fine. But it’s very important for us to hear now that we are being included,
with other workers, with other essential workers, with unions that do so much for the community.’” Yesenia Mata’s words remind us that our fight for nurse and patient safety goes beyond our hospitals’ walls. When we stand in solidarity with other workers, it does not go unnoticed. Protections for bus drivers, grocery workers, day laborers, domestic workers and more means healthier communities and more resilient hospitals.
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New York City
Give the bailouts back!
D
ozens of nurses and transit workers joined together on May 8 outside the offices of a Wall Street firm to give them a message: Bail-out money is to care for patients, not pad your pockets! National Holdings, a Wall Street investment firm, took $6 million in federal bailout money earmarked for coronavirus care at a moment when cities and states have asked for federal help to fund essential services. Their CEO makes almost $3 million a year. Top executives at National Holdings have faced multiple fines for financial malfeasance.
Wall Street has soaked up billions in COVID-19 bailout
Give the money back The revenue shortfall faced by state and local governments could be up to $500 billion, according to the Economic Policy Institute. Governor Cuomo is already talking about cutting budgets to make up the gap. MTA service has been chopped and NY’s health budget reduced by $2 billion. Top executives there have faced multiple fines for financial malfeasance. Wall Street has soaked up billions in COVID19 bailouts, while patients have
been given portable ventilators because that’s all the hospital had on hand. Some nurses resorted to GoFundMe campaigns to buy their own PPE. “For too long profit has come before the health of our com-
munities,” said Patricia Armand, CRNA at Montefiore Hutchinson campus. “Corporate greed came before protecting us. Give the money back to the communities who need it!”
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The RNs of Ozanam Hall
Around the state 9
Brooklyn Hospital should learn a lesson “This is a pervasive disease. We’ve never seen anything like this before,” said Catherine Primus, RN, Brooklyn Hospital Center. Primus spoke outside the hospital with fellow nurses on May 7, during Nurses Week. “We want all things in place before another wave comes,” she said. “It’s been heartbreaking seeing patients trying to catch their breath, gasping for breath.”
“We're getting sick ourselves” Her colleague, Sharon Rivera, RN, pointed to understaffing as a major lesson to be learned from this treacherous wave of COVID19 in the hospital. She described an “influx of patients” into an OR converted to ICU. Rivera cited lack of protective gear as her primary concern. “We were getting sick ourselves,” she said. NYSNA President Judy SheridanGonzalez, RN, was there and shared these words: “New York has a choice: science and survival, or corporate greed and death.” Brooklyn Hospital is a safety net hospital on which tens of thousands of patients depend. To restore safety net funding is as critical as a wellstaffed and prepared ICU.
T
he Registered Nurses of Ozanam Hall Nursing Home never considered giving up. Not when they were told that N95 masks were unavailable. Not when management engaged in ongoing denial about the spread of COVID19. Not when staffing dwindled. Not when the supply of gowns ran out and staff donned patient sleepwear. And not when television news revealed high fatalities. Staff is deeply dedicated to the residents of this long-term care facility, where the “Home” in the title is experienced viscerally. “Most who come to work at Ozanam Hall stay here, because we love the residents”, said Sandra Bonny, RN and member of the NYSNA Executive Committee. “It’s more than a job”. Early into the crisis, as symptoms appeared on one unit, man-
agement fell silent, denying the viral presence. But within days, it was clear that coronavirus was inhouse and spreading. Management didn’t respond to NYSNA’s health and safety inquiries, then cited only five cases on site. Ozanam’s public reports remained fixed in single digits long after staff revealed much higher numbers in both illness and fatalities. As of May 15, the website reported 52 active cases and 25 deaths. Offering only standard PPE for weeks, management recounted CDC standards. “This was ridiculous”, said Executive Committee member Marie Pierre RN. “Residents were infected throughout the home and we had surgical masks”. In response, NYSNA staff brought donated N95s directly to RNs. Management soon began distributing their own supply, albeit
limiting this to one N95 per week. “Many became very sick, including me”, explained Madeline Suprena, RN, Executive Committee Chair, reflecting on her quarantine. “This is a terrible disease”. Presently, NYSNA has filed a complaint with the Department of Health against Ozanam Hall and we are planning actions.
Nurses speak out at Rikers Island
O
n May 7, NYSNA nurses were joined by allies in labor and community organizations at the periphery of Rikers Correctional Center, on Rikers Island, Queens. “We decided to speak out at Rikers because it contains thousands of the most vulnerable New Yorkers in an incredibly infectious environment,” said Sean Petty, RN, NYSNA Board Member. “The nurses there are doing completely unacknowledged heroic work in trying to care for incarcerated persons. They are doing so without enough N95 masks and other personal protective equipment and they are taking care of detained persons without access to basic supplies, including easy access to running water. This is as cruel as it is unnecessary. We stand together as nurses across the public health system to demand equitable healthcare for every human being in this city.”
Greater risk The rally, held during National Nurses Week, cited both deficiencies in care as well as state budget cuts that combine to bring serious harm to the public health system, putting NYC’s most vulnerable populations at even greater risk.
Alicia Butler, RN, is president of the Rikers LBU. Speaking in behalf of the “rights of people in Rikers”,” she said that at Rikers nurses do not have adequate personal protective equipment, and patients lack even soap to stay clean. Necessary social distancing is not enforced and there is not enough testing to remain safe and healthy.
Lilian Udell, RN, Lincoln Hospital, delivered her own message of solidarity: “Simply being jailed at Rikers should not be a death sentence.” “Healthcare justice,” said NYSNA Executive Director Pat Kane, RN, “means the survival of all of us.”
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Long Island Excerpts from statement by Yasmine Beausejourn, RN, before the Nassau County Legislators, May 6
‘‘N
ew York’s healthcare system was unprepared for the virus. The continuing risk of airborne or contact transmission require ongoing precautions. Strict screening measures at hospitals must be enforced to a greater degree than we’ve seen. Every hospital in this state must adopt a higher standard of personal protective equipment. N95 respirator masks require fitting. Stockpiles must be built up.
Understaffing must end We must have rapid-result diagnostic testing for all frontline workers, as well as incoming patients and hospital visitors. Everyone must have time to rest and recover when infected. The
standard is two weeks and we must plan accordingly. As nurses, we know what we need to get the job done. That means safe staffing. Some of us working in the ICU have treated 3 or 4 patients, when peer-reviewed standards call for 1 or 2. This understaffing must end now. We must maintain “surge capacity”. There will be another wave of COVID-19 in New York. We must have beds, staff and equipment ready. Do not close hospital units and pretend that the crisis has passed. New York must maintain enough hospital beds and adequately trained staff for repeated outbreaks: this is not a one-time event. We must learn from our experience. We need major improvements
LI Nurses kick off
Yasmine Beausejour, RN, NYSNA Board Member
to hospital plant and equipment, such as improved ventilation. In order to achieve readiness, we must fix healthcare funding. Here in New York, the budget just passed included a $2.5 billion cut in Medicaid. This is exactly the wrong time to cut healthcare funding.”
Yonkers vigil ends Nurses Week
N
urses week drew to a close on May 12 and nurses from two hospitals, St. Joseph’s Medical Center and St. John’s Riverside Hospital, both in Yonkers, gathered for a candlelight vigil. It was an event to honor healthcare workers on the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic, celebrate COVID-19 survivors, and mourn those who lost the battle to the disease. “The nurses stood 6 feet apart with a lit candle but in reality they were right next to each other supporting each other through the horror of corona, the entire time. The respect, gratitude, and appreciation they have for each other further strengthens the solidarity and power of this profession,” said Kathy Hoffer from SJRH.
The gathering of more than 50 community supporters, 1199SEIU members, and elected officials closed out Nurses Week by honoring healthcare workers on the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic, celebrate COVID-19 survivors, and mourn those who
lost the battle to the disease. Nurses were pleased to get support from Yonkers City Council President Mike Khader, the City of Yonkers, Westchester County Legislator David Tubiolo, and City Court Judge Verris Shanko.
Long Island nurses kicked off the start of Nurses Week by unveiling the #ThankANurse social media initiative with the support of Legislator Bill Gaylor, a range of other Nasssau County legislators, and the CSEA. The press conference hailed the lifesaving work of RNs in Nassau County’s 11 hospitals, and encouraged the community to get engaged by posting #ThankANurse messages on social media. Nurses conveyed the message that the best way to thank nurses is by listening to them—especially regarding the safety measures that are necessary before the state reopens. Throughout Nurses Week, community members in Long Island and beyond participated in the #ThankANurse campaign, sending not only messages of gratitude, but solidarity with our demands for a safe and science-informed reopening.
“We have never faced anything as devastating as the COVID-19 pandemic before, but with the support of our Smithtown officials, local business owners, the community from the surrounding ares, and our union, NYSNA, the nurses of St. Catherine of Siena Medical Center are much better able to protect ourselves, our patients and our families. We THANK YOU sincerely for your efforts—the PPE, the meals, the parades, the signs, the outpouring of support means more than you will ever know. God Bless and Everyone Stay Safe.” Lorraine Incarnato, RN, ICU
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St. Elizabeth nurses push back on staffing cuts
I Around the state 9
n late April, as St. Elizabeth Medical Center was preparing for both a surge of COVID-19 patients and reopening elective surgeries, executives at parent company Mohawk Valley Health System (MVHS) announced sweeping staffing cuts. MVHS wanted to furlough 20% of non-administration staff at St. Elizabeth and Faxton St. Luke’s, but NYSNA nurses pushed back and invoked the stronger lay-off language in their contract.
“We need more hands on deck” On National Nurses Day, nurses held a social distancing rally along the parkway in Utica, with an outpouring of support from the community. NYSNA also launched an ad and media campaign to bring back the nurses. “There was a safe staffing problem before the layoffs, and now nurses are working to the bone to provide the best care that we can,” said Sheila Conley, RN, LBU President. “We come home after every shift physically and mentally exhausted; more so because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Management needs to recognize what we do at the bedside and that we need more hands on deck.” So far, MVHS has laid off 42 nurses, instead of the 78 nurses they initially announced. Per diems
St. Elizabeth’s nurses are fighting for their patients!
have been working more and temporary travel nurses who are hired through a staffing agency are still being employed at St. Elizabeth’s, so there is clearly a need for more nurses.
Building pride “When I heard about the layoffs, I thought per diems would not be getting shifts, since we make more than the average nurse and only get called in after the full and part time nurses have been scheduled,” said Tosha Elseth, RN. “Suddenly I was getting called in every day, and I wondered how they could be laying off nurses when per diems and travelers are still being called
St. Elizabeth’s nurses line the parkway to protest layoffs.
in? I don’t want to take the place of someone who really should be there full-time.” St. Elizabeth nurses are not resting until they bring back their colleagues and get the safe staffing that nurses and their patients deserve. They are diligently filling out POAs and COVID POAs. They are continuing to build pride and public support through button days and media. Conley concluded, “We’ve come a long way as a union, but we’ve never gone through anything like this before. We are all fighting for the same cause—safety for patients and nurses. We will get through this together.”
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Member dues rates for 2020-2021
’s 2020-2021 membership dues rates will take effect July 1. NYSNA dues are computed according to a formula approved by the members at the 2001 Voting Body. The formula uses a Regional Base Salary (RBS) to determine the dues for members in six different
NYSNA
regions in New York state and one in New Jersey. The RBS is the average of the starting salary paid to staff nurses at all NYSNA-represented facilities in each region as of Jan. 1, 2020. A calculation of 1.6 percent of this average determines the dues rate for members in that
Nurses Represented by NYSNA for Collective Bargaining
Nurses Not Represented by NYSNA for Collective Bargaining
Full-Time Collective Bargaining Unit Member Southern Southeastern Lower Hudson New Jersey/South Eastern Central Western
$ 1,439 $ 1,357 $ 1,323 $ 1,087 $ 1,033 $ 943 $ 1,008
Rate is 1.6% of the lowest average starting salary in the region where you work.
Employed nurses not represented by NYSNA for collective bargaining Southern Southeastern Lower Hudson New Jersey/South Eastern Central Western
$ 764 $ 721 $ 703 $ 579 $ 551 $ 504 $ 538
Rate is 70% of 1.2% of the lowest average starting salary in the region where you work.
Part Time/Per Diem Collective Bargaining Unit Member
Unemployed nurses or employed nurses age 62 and over and not earning more than allowed under Social Security
Southern Southeastern Lower Hudson New Jersey/South Eastern Central Western
Southern Southeastern Lower Hudson New Jersey/South Eastern Central Western
$ 1,084 $ 1,022 $ 997 $ 819 $ 779 $ 712 $ 760
Rate is 1.2% of the lowest average starting salary in the region where you work.
$ 551 $ 520 $ 508 $ 419 $ 399 $ 365 $ 389
Rate is 50% of 1.2% of the lowest average starting salary in the region where you work or, if you are unemployed, where you live.
Nurses age 62 and over and unemployed, and RNs who are totally or permanently disabled (Social Security award letter required) or Lifetime Members** (age 65 or over and paid NYSNA members for 25 years or more) Southern Southeastern Lower Hudson New Jersey/South Eastern Central Western
$ 284 $ 269 $ 263 $ 218 $ 208 $ 191 $ 204
Rate is 25% of 1.2% of the lowest average starting salary in the region where you live.
region who are represented for collective bargaining and work full time; and 1.2 percent for members who are represented for collective bargaining and work less than full time. Dues are not a percentage of each member’s individual salary.
Retired category: Nurses not represented for collective bargaining, who are 62 years or older and retired and earning not more than what social security allows. Annual retiree dues are $100 for all regions. Dues Regions Western: Allegany, Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, Chemung, Erie, Genesee, Livingston, Monroe, Niagara, Ontario, Orleans, Schuyler, Seneca, Steuben, Tompkins, Wayne, Wyoming, Yates Central: Broome, Cayuga, Chenango, Cortland, Delaware, Fulton, Herkimer, Jefferson, Lewis, Madison, Montgomery, Oneida, Onondaga, Oswego, Otsego, Schenectady, St. Lawrence, Tioga Eastern: Albany, Clinton, Columbia, Essex, Franklin, Greene, Hamilton, Orange, Rensselaer, Saratoga, Schoharie, Sullivan, Ulster, Warren, Washington Southern: Bronx, Kings, New York, Queens, Richmond Lower Hudson: Dutchess, Putnam, Rockland, Westchester Southeastern: Nassau, Suffolk New Jersey/South: Atlantic, Burlington, Camden, Cape May, Cumberland, Gloucester, Ocean, Salem
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NEW YORK NURSE
Non-Profit US Postage Paid NYSNA
may 2020
131 West 33rd Street, 4th Floor New York, NY 10001
INSIDE
What is justice? p. 2
The NYSNA Safety Plan, pp. 4-5
NYSNA statement on dismantling institutional racism, p. 6