The California Nurses Association, currently in heated negotiations with Kaiser Permanente in Northern California, sponsored a two-day strike (November 11 and 12, 2014) to “stop eroding patient care conditions & provide better Ebola safeguards” (per CNA’s Facebook page).

For its part, Kaiser issued a press release stating, “[t]o the public, the union is claiming this strike is about Ebola. But the fact is Kaiser Permanente teams have been working on preparations for Ebola non-stop. We are doing everything possible to ensure the safety of each nurse, physician and staff member who may be called upon to provide compassionate, high-quality care for a patient with the Ebola virus.”

While we cannot know with certainty whether the strike is truly about Ebola preparedness as CNA claims or if it is a negotiating ploy by CNA as Kaiser claims, the strike continues and will undoubtedly affect patient care at Kaiser facilities.