Hospital nurses voice concern over HR-1 cuts
By Christine Stoddard
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OROVILLE, California (KHSL) — Oroville Hospital nurses voiced concern over how HR-1 federal funding cuts will affect their patients at a Red Alert rally at the Southside Oroville Community Center on Saturday.
Oroville Hospital nurses represented by the California Nurses Association and National Nurses United held a Red Alert rally and community awareness event. The rally focused on the financial threat posed by HR-1 budget cuts to the hospital and its patients.
“Our population is vulnerable,” said See Vang, a registered nurse at Oroville Hospital. “They’re elderly. They live in fifth-wheelers trailers after the fire in 2018. And they’re very vulnerable. And we rely so much on Medicare and Medicaid to keep our hospital running.”
National Nurses United has put Oroville Hospital on a Red Alert status due to the financial threat of HR-1 budget cuts. More than 85% of the hospital’s net revenue comes from Medicaid and Medicare, federal programs now facing more than a trillion dollars in cuts.
Organizers say that rather than fund ICE, the Iran war and billionaire tax breaks, the money should go toward nonprofit and community hospitals like Oroville. Already bankrupt, Oroville is one of 600 hospitals identified by National Nurses United for being at high risk due to HR-1 cuts.
“You know, as a registered nurse, I don’t feel threatened for my job,” Vang said. “But I do worry about our community and the patients that actually do rely on the hospital for their care.”
National Nurses United has even commissioned a children’s book to help kids understand the importance of having a hospital right in their community: Medi Bear Saves the Hospital.
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