Kansas

Kansas City nurses to rally against HCA contract proposals that endanger patient care

Published

2 years ago

June 24, 2024

Kansas City nurses to rally against HCA contract proposals that endanger patient care

RNs demand serious proposals to improve staffing, nurse retention

Nurses from HCA-owned Research Medical Center and Menorah Medical Center will rally on June 26 to protest HCA’s failure to seriously address their staffing and nurse retention crises in contract negotiations. Nurses are represented by National Nurses Organizing Committee/National Nurses United (NNOC/NNU).

“It doesn’t matter if you’re in Missouri or Kansas, you deserve the best from HCA. That’s what we’re asking for as nurses, for ourselves and for our patients,” said Jessica Wheat, RN in the labor and delivery/postpartum unit at Research Medical Center. “Improving safety at the hospital for us and the conditions we work in improves the conditions patients are cared for in, and that’s what we’re fighting for.”

The nurses’ most recent contracts at Research Medical Center in Kansas City, Missouri, and Menorah Medical Center in Overland Park, Kansas, expired May 31. But, in bargaining sessions to date, nurses report that HCA has refused to address chronic and systemic problems such as short staffing and lack of resources that undermine and jeopardize patient care.

Who: Nurses at HCA’s Research and Menorah Medical Centers
What: Protest to demand a strong contract
When: Wednesday, June 26, 5:45 p.m.
Where: Research Medical Center, 2316 Meyer Blvd., Kansas City, Missouri; on the Meyer Blvd sidewalk, just south of the hospital’s main entrance

“Staffing remains a serious issue at our hospital, and that has impacts on patient care,” said Ashley Richmond, RN in the surgical specialty unit at Menorah Medical Center. “We’re fighting for better staffing, measures to retain our nurses, and basic things like making sure nurses get our meal and rest breaks and adequate rest time after long hours on mandatory on-call shifts in the surgical services units. We know these are issues at HCA facilities across the country, and nurses are fighting to fix them.”

HCA, the largest health system in the country, advertises over 180 hospitals in its network. The company self-reported over $5.2 billion in profits in 2023 but regularly shuts down vital health services at its hospitals. According to Securities and Exchange Commission filings, HCA has reported over $31.7 billion in profits since 2018 and executive compensation totaling hundreds of millions of dollars.

HCA co-founder and major shareholder Thomas Frist Jr., who has extensive experience serving as an executive at HCA, currently ranks in the top 75 of the Forbes 400 Richest Americans and the top 60 of the Bloomberg Billionaire Index of the world’s 500 richest people, with an estimated net worth of nearly $30 billion.

NNOC/NNU represents more than 1,000 nurses at Research and Menorah Medical Centers in the Kansas City area and nearly 10,000 nurses at HCA facilities nationwide. NNOC/NNU nurses are currently negotiating new contracts at 17 HCA hospitals in six states.

National Nurses Organizing Committee is an affiliate of National Nurses United, the largest and fastest-growing union and professional association of registered nurses in the United States with nearly 225,000 members nationwide. NNU affiliates also include California Nurses Association, DC Nurses Association, Michigan Nurses Association, Minnesota Nurses Association, and New York State Nurses Association.

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Kansas

IU football lands Kansas State transfer edge rusher Tobi Osunsanmi

Published

11 hours ago

January 4, 2026

Press Room

IU football lands Kansas State transfer edge rusher Tobi Osunsanmi

Indiana’s portal haul continued to grow Sunday as multiple outlets reported the addition of Kansas State edge rusher Tobi Osunsanmi.

Osunsanmi has played in 36 games over the last four years and has 8.5 sacks and 12.5 tackles for loss. Most of that production came over the last two seasons. He has a total of 47 QB pressures during his college career.

In 2025 he played in six games and had 20 tackles, 6.0 tackles for loss and 4.0 sacks. He suffered a season-ending injury in October.

He saw action in all 13 games in 2024 as a reserve defensive end and on special teams, recording 19 tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks and a forced fumble over 303 defensive snaps and 31 special teams plays.

In 2023 he saw time in all 13 games as a reserve linebacker, a rush end on passing downs and on special teams. He was tied for team-high honors with five tackles on kickoff coverage.

He played in four games in 2022 and preserved his redshirt.

The 6-foot-3 and 250-pound Osunsanmi has one year of eligibility remaining.

The Wichita, Kan. product (Wichita East H.S.) was regarded as the 232nd-best overall player in the nation for the Class of 2022 by 247Sports.

Osunsanmi will help fill the void left by outgoing edge rushers Mikail Kamara, Kellan Wyatt and Stephen Daley.

More transfer portal information:

For complete coverage of IU football recruiting, GO HERE.

The Daily Hoosier –“Where Indiana fans assemble when they’re not at Assembly”

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Kansas

Kansas football transfer portal tracker: Jan. 4 developments for KU

Published

23 hours ago

January 4, 2026

Press Room

Kansas football transfer portal tracker: Jan. 4 developments for KU

LAWRENCE — The Division I transfer portal window for college football is open from Jan. 2 through Jan. 16, and that means Sunday is another chance for the Kansas football program to shape its roster.

The Jayhawks already gained one public addition earlier this offseason in Grand Valley State transfer Jibriel Conde — whose signing was announced Dec. 4. Conde, who is making the jump up from Division II, is a 247Sports-rated three-star defensive lineman in the portal and is listed by KU as a defensive tackle. On Saturday, a number of current Kansas players — including redshirt freshman quarterback Isaiah Marshall, redshirt sophomore wide receiver Keaton Kubecka and redshirt sophomore defensive tackle Blake Herold — also outlined in social media posts on X that they are locked in with the program for the 2026 season.

Marshall is set to compete for the starting quarterback job next season. Kubecka has the chance to step up into a more significant role at wide receiver. Herold is in line to be a key part of Kansas’ defensive line.

Those positives, though, don’t outweigh the fact that there has been a sizable group of players who have revealed their intentions to transfer away. Looking overall, when it comes to those whose decisions became public before and after the portal opened, the significant names to know include redshirt senior safety Lyrik Rawls, redshirt junior linebacker Trey Lathan and freshman quarterback David McComb. Lathan led KU in tackles in 2025.

Check in here for more updates during this transfer portal window about a KU team that finished 5-7 during the 2025 season, with transfer ratings as outlined by 247Sports.

Kansas football transfer portal additions

Jibriel Conde (3-star defensive lineman from Grand Valley State) — KU lists him as a defensive tackle

Kansas football transfer portal departures

Joseph Sipp Jr. (linebacker)

Jacoby Davis (cornerback)

Dylan Brooks (defensive end)

Jaidyn Doss (wide receiver)

Carter Lavrusky (offensive lineman)

Trey Lathan (linebacker)

Tyler Mercer (offensive lineman)

Harry Stewart III (running back)

Caleb Redd (3-star edge) — KU lists him as a defensive end

Aundre Gibson (3-star cornerback)

David McComb (3-star quarterback)

Kene Anene (3-star interior offensive lineman) — KU lists him as an offensive lineman

Laquan Robinson (3-star safety)

Jameel Croft Jr. (3-star cornerback)

Logan Brantley (3-star linebacker)

Greydon Grimes (3-star offensive tackle) — KU lists him as an offensive lineman

Jon Jon Kamara (3-star linebacker)

Lyrik Rawls (3-star safety)

Damani Maxson (3-star safety)

Jaden Hamm (tight end)

Bryce Cohoon (wide receiver)

JaCorey Stewart (linebacker)

Johnny Thompson Jr. (running back)

Efren Jasso (punter)

Jordan Guskey covers University of Kansas Athletics at The Topeka Capital-Journal. He was the 2022 National Sports Media Association’s sportswriter of the year for the state of Kansas. Contact him at jmguskey@gannett.com or on Twitter at @JordanGuskey.

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