Release: Representatives Khanna, Lee, and Deluzio Call on UPMC to Address Staffing Concerns and Bargain in Good Faith with Healthcare Workers

Washington, DC — Representatives Ro Khanna (CA-17), Summer L. Lee (PA-12), and Chris Deluzio (PA-17) sent a letter urging the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) to bargain in good faith with nurses, nurse practitioners, and midwives at UPMC Magee-Womens Hospital after the lawmakers received reports raising concerns about staffing levels and patient care.

“We have received troubling reports from our constituents and organizers that nurses are routinely assigned more patients than nationally recognized clinical standards recommend. Nurses have described situations in which a single labor and delivery nurse may be responsible for two or three patients, even though established standards call for a patient in active labor to receive dedicated nursing care,” said the lawmakers. 

The lawmakers also called on UPMC to make progress in contract negotiations with hundreds of health care professionals at Magee-Womens, who have been negotiating for months.

“For approximately eight months, nearly 900 health care professionals at UPMC Magee have been negotiating for a contract that reflects the critical role they play in caring for patients and families throughout western Pennsylvania. These workers have raised serious concerns about inadequate staffing, excessive workloads, and conditions that prevent them from consistently providing the level of care their patients deserve. UPMC has a responsibility to listen to these frontline professionals and work constructively to resolve their concerns without unnecessary delays,” the lawmakers continued. 

To read the full letter, click here.

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