Latest News
Kaiser Therapists: Strike Is About Complying With the Law
The HMO needs to hire more clinicians to ensure that patients wait no more than the legally mandated 10 days between appointments, says veteran therapist.
California’s SB 221, a law meant to ensure mental health patients receive therapy on a timely schedule, went into effect in July. The law was sponsored by the National Union of Healthcare Workers, whose Kaiser Permanente members in Northern California have been on strike since Monday, Aug. 15. (Disclosure: NUHW is a financial supporter of this website.)
Kaiser says it is “bargaining in good faith” to reach an agreement, but Jane Kostka, a Sacramento psychiatric social worker participating in the strike, says the HMO will have to hire many more therapists if it is to comply with the law. Cutting patient wait times and keeping therapists’ caseloads at manageable levels are the fundamental issues in the strike, Kostka says.
Copyright 2022 Capital & Main
-
Latest NewsOctober 14, 2025People in ICE Custody Face Invasive Strip Searches After Visits With Loved Ones
-
Column - State of InequalityOctober 9, 2025California Joins New York in Trying to Fill a Void on Worker Protections
-
Column - State of InequalityOctober 2, 2025Deep-Blue California Is a National Leader in De Facto Public-School Segregation. Here’s Why…
-
Column - California UncoveredOctober 14, 2025‘They Just Took You Away’
-
Dirty MoneyOctober 6, 2025On Louisiana’s Gulf Coast, Residents Fume as Insurers Hike Rates and Invest in Fossil Fuel Projects
-
The SlickOctober 10, 2025It’s Brown And Burns Your Eyes. In Small-Town Texas, Clean Water Is Elusive.
-
Striking BackOctober 15, 2025Dollar Store Workers Fight to Improve Jobs, Even Without a Union
-
Column - State of InequalityOctober 16, 2025Five-Day Strike by Kaiser Permanente Workers Is About More Than Money