California Health Care Workers Urge Senate to Pass Coronavirus Relief Package

Health care workers at 24 Bay Area hospitals held protests Wednesday, calling on their employers and the government to do a better job of handling the coronavirus crisis.

The protests were part of a nationwide effort of more than 200 events, led by nurses, urging the U.S. Senate to pass the HEROES Act. If passed, it would invoke the Defense Production Act and trigger a mass production and delivery of personal protective equipment (PPE) and other medical supplies. It would also mandate the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to establish an emergency temporary standard on infectious diseases.

Zenei Cortez, a registered nurse and president of the California Nurses Association, says health care workers need “optimal” PPE, especially as COVID-19 cases continue to rise.

“We have been protesting and demanding many, many times, and still they have failed us,” Cortez said, “I don't think they're even trying. Nurses continue to put their lives on the line, and so the number of deaths among nurses and other front-line workers continues to go up.”

Employers say they are following guidelines issued by public health experts, and that they’ve had to ration their stockpile of PPE amid a worldwide shortage.

“Our procurement teams have made sure we have had the appropriate PPE to protect our teams today and have stabilized our supply chain for the potential of future surges in this pandemic,” said a Kaiser Permanente spokesperson in a statement. “We could not have achieved this without the diligent work of our staff to follow PPE protocols and conservation efforts.”

Other demands from the health care workers include better staffing and contact tracing efforts by employers, for the government to invest in public health and for the dismantling of structural racism that disproportionately affects the lives of Black, Indigenous, and people of color.

According to the California Department of Public Health, nearly 25,000 health care workers have tested positive for the virus and 131 have died.

— Julie Chang (@BayAreaJulie)