Local 49 taking Charge on Health Care

Local 49 is a national leader on health care issues.  We helped form the Consumer Worker Coalition (CWC) bringing together other unions and consumer groups to advocate for patients input on health care reform.  Local 49 Assistant Business Manager/Treasurer Jim Hansen serves as the co-chair of the CWC and directs the group’s efforts.  Recently, Local 49 legislative and political organizer Jason George has been working on the important issue of hospital acquired infections on behalf of the CWC. 

Thousands of people each year (including too many Operating Engineers) go into the hospital for a simple procedure and end up getting a deadly infection while they are there.  These infections are preventable, and until now, not enough has been done to stop them.  Jason has been working with the hospitals in this state to implement a reporting system that will help our members get information on infection rates for specific hospitals, so you can look for yourselves to see which ones have high rates of infections and avoid those places.

http://www.house.leg.state.mn.us/htv/archivesCOMM.asp?comm=86139&ls_year=86