Health Care
15,000 nurses launch historic 3-day strike at hospitals across Twin Cities, Duluth
Thousands of union nurses walked off the job at 15 hospitals across the Twin Cities and Duluth area on Monday morning, launching the largest private-sector nurses strike in U.S. history. The picket line in front of Allina’s United Hospital and Children’s Minnesota in St. Paul stretched for two blocks, with nurses holding signs reading “Patients […]
Thousands of Minnesota nurses hit the picket lines in historic 3-day strike
The largest private-sector nurses strike in U.S. history began on Monday with some 15,000 nurses launching a three-day strike at 15 hospitals across the Twin Cities and Duluth area. The hospitals say the strike will bring minimal disruptions to patient care as they lean on thousands of traveling nurses to replace striking nurses. The strike […]
Minnesota state representative to become CEO of Planned Parenthood North Central States
Minnesota Rep. Ruth Richardson, DFL-Mendota Heights, will be the next CEO of Minnesota’s Planned Parenthood affiliate, the organization announced Wednesday. Planned Parenthood North Central States oversees centers in Minnesota, Iowa, Nebraska and the Dakotas. The two-term legislator is also running for reelection this November. Planned Parenthood said in a release that Richardson will oversee health […]
Inflation Reduction Act extends savings on MinnesotaCare premiums through 2025
About 90,000 residents on MinnesotaCare — the public health insurance program for the working poor — will be able to continue forgoing premium payments or keep paying lower rates through 2025 due to the Inflation Reduction Act signed into law by President Joe Biden, the Department of Human Services announced in a Tuesday news release. MinnesotaCare, […]
Hospitals allege nurses’ strike would be illegal; union says it won’t back down
Hours after the Minnesota Nurses Association announced 15,000 nurses would go on strike at hospitals across the Twin Cities and Duluth area, several health systems filed complaints with the National Labor Relations Board seeking to block the strike. A spokeswoman for St. Luke’s Duluth said the union has not given proper notice of their intent […]
15,000 Minnesota nurses to walk off job in historic strike over wages and staffing levels
After months of stalled negotiations, some 15,000 union nurses across more than a dozen hospitals will strike for three days later this month in what the union believes will be the largest private sector nurses’ strike in U.S. history. “Today is a somber day,” said Minnesota Nurses Association President Mary Turner, dressed in all black, […]
Jensen to appear with all-star lineup of anti-vaxxers at Alexandria event
Scott Jensen, a Chaska doctor who is the Republican nominee for governor, is scheduled to speak at a “global health freedom summit” in Alexandria on Oct. 1, joined by some of the most prominent anti-vaccine activists in the world. Although Jensen has denied being anti-vaccine, as of earlier this year he wasn’t vaccinated and he […]
White House calls meeting with college officials on how to curb monkeypox on campus
WASHINGTON — The White House held a virtual meeting Thursday with more than 1,000 college and university officials to help them prepare for a school year when monkeypox cases are expected to crop up on campus. The Biden administration’s monkeypox and COVID-19 response teams as well as representatives from the Centers for Disease Control and […]
Ellison issues consumer alert about Minnesota crisis pregnancy centers
Minnesota crisis pregnancy centers target low-income people and provide misleading information about abortion and contraception, according to Attorney General Keith Ellison. Ellison on Tuesday issued a consumer alert for Minnesotans warning that crisis pregnancy centers tout comprehensive health care but actually push pregnant people away from abortion — often through deceiving messaging and methods. Minnesota […]
Anthony Fauci, leader on federal COVID response, to step down in December
WASHINGTON — Anthony Fauci, one of the federal government’s leading public health figures, announced Monday he’ll be leaving his post in December, though he made clear he’s not retiring. The 81-year-old doctor who runs the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, which is part of the National Institutes of Health, became a household name […]
Biden administration asks state, local officials to boost monkeypox vaccine outreach
WASHINGTON — Federal public health officials said Thursday they are working with state and local health departments to boost messaging and vaccinations for those most likely to contract monkeypox, including at large-scale events. But Biden administration officials at a press briefing also struggled to explain differing statements about how the vaccines should be administered, a […]
Attorney general: Minnesota reaches ninth settlement with opioid company in 2.5 years
Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison on Wednesday announced another settlement with an opioid company that will further swell the state’s opioid settlement pool, which is now worth hundreds of millions of dollars. Over the past two and a half years, the attorney general’s office says it has reached nine settlements with opioid companies — the […]