What California members can expect

More than 68,000 Kaiser Permanente health care workers in California walked off the job Wednesday to call for solutions to staffing shortages and improved labor practices. During the three-day strike, Kaiser members may notice some impacts such as temporary pharmacy and laboratory closures and longer wait times when calling an advice nurse.

The Coalition of Kaiser Permanente Unions is leading the labor action and calling it the largest health care strike in history. Workers are walking back and forth on the picket lines at medical centers across the San Francisco Bay Area, including Oakland and San Francisco. The majority of workers striking are based at California medical centers; some 7,000 Kaiser workers are on the picket lines outside the state, in Colorado, Washington, Oregon, Virginia and Washington, D.C. 

Kaiser Permanente is one of the country’s larger insurers and health care system operators, with 39 hospitals nationwide. The nonprofit company, based in Oakland, provides health coverage for nearly 13 million people, sending customers to clinics and hospitals it runs or contracts with to provide care.

The strike is expected to end after three days. The workers going on strike include licensed vocational nurses, ultrasound sonographers, front desk clerks, housekeepers, teleservice representatives, respiratory therapists, dietary service workers, behavioral health workers and technicians in radiology, X-ray, surgical, pharmacy and emergency departments.

Registered nurses and doctors are continuing to work through the strike, according to a statement from Kaiser Permanente. The company said it was bringing in thousands of temporary workers to fill gaps during the strike.

Kaiser said some members may need to reschedule nonurgent appointments and procedures such as elective surgeries due to the strike. If your appointment needs to be rescheduled, you will receive a call.

“There is no need for patients to call or email their doctor’s office at this time,” Kaiser said.

Some outpatient pharmacies may be closed or operating at a reduced schedule. Members can use the mail order service for prescriptions or go to kp.org to find a list of open pharmacies.

Some laboratory, radiology and optical locations may also temporarily close or be open for fewer hours than usual. If you have an emergency and need an appointment at one of these locations, Kaiser advises that you call the advice and appointment line that’s open 24 hours a day, seven days a week at 1-866-454-8855.

Medical centers across the Bay Area are impacted, including those in Antioch, Fremont, Oakland, Redwood City, Richmond, San Francisco, South San Francisco, San Jose, San Leandro, Santa Clara, Santa Rosa, Vacaville, Vallejo and Walnut Creek, according to the coalition of unions.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.