3 The President’s Column Our recipe to defend healthcare.
4 Massachusetts PCAs Fight Back Members join forces with activists and community allies to protect senior care.
5 Editorial We are many, they are few.
6 Around the Regions MA Members Praise Hospital Oversight Bill; Nantucket Members Negotiate 19 Percent Increases; Massachusetts Psychiatric Hospital Members Win 32 Percent Raises; DC Member Receives National Award; Members Celebrate MLK Day in Rochester.
We are not alone in the fight to protect Medicaid. Using our vast member strength and standing with our political and community allies, we can win it.
9 Remembering Dan North Commemorating a pioneering chronicler of 1199 member activism.
12 The Work We Do Members who work at the StartCare methadone clinic in Brooklyn, NY, provide compassionate and empathetic care to people trying to turn their lives around after becoming addicted to opioids.
16 Hands off Medicaid Congress is threatening to slash funding which provides a lifeline for more than 72 million Americans in favor of billionaires’ tax breaks.
18 Delegate Profile: Anjelique Huerta Being a good listener and stepping outside her comfort zone was the key to understanding how political action unlocks working peoples’ power.
20 Protecting In-Home Caregivers 1199 worked with New York State to protect a program serving hundreds of thousands of caregivers and their families from greedy middlemen.
22 Battling AntiUnion Political Foes 1199 Members have always won gains, even in hostile political environments.
It was entirely predictable. With new leadership in Washington, DC, and “Project 2025” now firmly shaping our national political agenda, the billionaires, the bankers, the hedge funds, the tech oligarchs, and other representatives of the ultrawealthy are working overtime to line their pockets at the expense of everyone else. They are coming for “us”—we who do the work, we who make the goods and provide the services, we who produce the wealth—we who make things run. This is particularly true in the field of healthcare, where threats to Medicaid are mounting quickly. We must use the fullest extent of 1199’s national political clout and our power in numbers to organize a united front and fight back.
Medicaid is our nation’s biggest and most successful healthcare program, providing care to the frail and elderly, low-income families, children, the most vulnerable among us. Medicaid provides about 80 percent of revenues in the home care industry, a majority of nursing home revenues, and—depending on the patient population—30 percent or more of hospital revenues. Which is to say, tens of thousands of our jobs are on the line in this fight.
Under President Joe Biden, enrollment in Medicaid hit a record high—over 70 million people—and the uninsured rate reached a record low. This was great progress. But the leadership now controlling the levers of power in Washington DC are trying to reverse course.
Republicans say they plan to use funding cuts and regulatory changes to dramatically shrink
Medicaid. The proposals include rolling back the Affordable Care Act’s Medicaid expansion, which over the last 11 years has added about 20 million low-income adults to its rolls. And why do they say this is necessary? Because they want to extend the 2017 Trump tax cuts for millionaires and billionaires, which are slated to expire at the end of this year. So that’s their desired trade-off: cut off healthcare for sick children, the infirm and elderly, and slash healthcare funding, just so that the Elon Musks, Jeff Bezos, and Mark Zuckerbergs of the world can buy yet another superyacht or another home in Maui.
But this is not a done deal. The fight has just begun. I have built deep relationships over the years with leaders including House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, and I know they will stand in our corner as 1199 builds the broadest possible fightback to defend healthcare funding. Faith leaders including Rev. William Barber and Rev. Jesse Jackson and are with us in this fight. And many stalwart labor leaders, including our SEIU President April Verrett, AFL-CIO president Liz Shuler, American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten, and the millions of members they represent are with us, too.
It is clear where Trump stands and that the Republicancontrolled Congress is, for the most part, ready to do his bidding. But Republican control is only by the barest of margins—and that is thanks to incredible work we at 1199 did in the last election to mobilize voters in key swing
Every 1199 region, from Florida to Massachusetts, has one or more Congress members who are vulnerable in their next election. Our job is to make them understand that if they want to remain in office into 2027, they must protect Medicaid.
districts. If Democrats stand together, House Republicans can only afford to lose two defectors.
Every 1199 region, from Florida to Massachusetts, has one or more Congress members who are vulnerable in their next election. Our job is to make them understand that if they want to remain in office into 2027, they must protect Medicaid.
We have already put Congress members on notice by rallying outside of district offices. But this is just the beginning. Many state governments, hospital systems, long-term care providers, other unions—and everyone who wants to do well by doing good—need Medicaid to be adequately funded, and we must build the broadest possible coalition.
No doubt, Washington DC extremists and their billionaire pals are preparing to wage war against working people, especially healthcare workers like us. But, 1199ers know how to fight and we know how to win. The future of our patients, our jobs, our families, and our country is at stake. Time to put on your marching shoes.
If we are to defend our rights and overcome the extremist Republicans in Washington D.C., working people will need to come together as one.
Members join forces with activists and community allies to protect senior care.
After successfully reversing proposed cuts to the Massachusetts personal care attendant (PCA) program in 2024, it was time for 1199 PCAs to fight to protect the state’s senior residents once again at the beginning of this year. On January 7, Union members joined forces with the disability community to deliver a letter to Governor Maura Healey demanding that she fully fund the program in the FY26 budget.
There are more than 58,000 PCAs in Massachusetts, providing home health care to nearly 50,000
consumers in the state, and they are all represented by 1199SEIU.
The letter to Governor Healey stated: “PCA services enable thousands of people with disabilities, including many older adults, to live independently in the community, with significant enhancement to their independence and wellbeing.
Absent PCA services some people would need to enter a costly nursing facility, others might lose their job, and the health of many people would decline, putting more pressures on already overburdened
“I hope that everyone who needs help through the PCA program is able to receive it, and that means we must fully fund the program. I say this knowing that one day, I myself may need the same care from a PCA.”
– Zohra Ayou 1199 PCA, Massachusetts 1199 members and community allies after delivering their letter to Governor Healey at the Massachusetts statehouse in Boston.
health care systems and other state-funded services.”
Along with 1199, the letter was signed by almost 30 organizations, including the Disability Law Center, the Massachusetts Senior Action Council, and Health Care for All.
When Governor Healey announced her draft budget on January 22, it included overly restrictive growth caps on the PCA program. Tim Foley, 1199SEIU Executive Vice President for Massachusetts says, “Restricting future access to the PCA program will result in waiting lists and push consumers who rely on support from PCAs out of the program. This proposal places the burden onto already struggling families to care for their loved ones and increases the likelihood of more intensive care settings such as nursing homes and frequent overnight hospital stays.”
Zohra Ayou, an 1199 PCA who attended the rally at the Boston statehouse, adds, “I take care of everything for my mom, including cleaning, cooking, grocery shopping, and taking her to medical appointments. I am so happy that I get to take care of her, and that she gets to stay at home. I hope that everyone who needs help through the PCA program is able to receive it, and that means we must fully fund the program. I say this knowing that one day, I myself may need the same care from a PCA.”
The PCA program has grown tremendously in recent years as the Massachusetts population grows older and more people choose to remain in their homes. In 2020, 14 percent of Massachusetts residents were 65 or older. The UMass Donahue Institute population projections predict that by 2050, that number will climb to 27 percent above the retirement age of 65. 1199ers negotiated a threeyear contract with the state in 2023 that will raise PCA pay from the flat $18/hour rate to a wage scale that goes up to $25/hour based on experience by 2027.
It is easy to feel scared and defeated as we learn of each new assault on our national institutions and laws that we thought were set in stone.
Nearly 1,600 people convicted in the wake of the January 6th riots were given pardons or had their sentences commuted on the first day of the new administration. Then the White House ordered a sweeping freeze of all Federal assistance which could impact more than 400 health programs, including those where 1199 members work.
But while the news coming out of Washington since the inauguration is
very bad for working people, it is not the whole story.
Union membership continues to surge even as the billionaires seem to be gaining power. The number of union election petitions filed with the National Labor Relations Board in 2024 went up by 27 percent compared with 2023. That trend has continued into 2025. On Monday, January 27, the employees at the flagship Whole Foods Store in Philadelphia’s Center City neighborhood voted to unionize. The grocery chain owned by Amazon, one of the largest corporations in the
We know how important it is to continue funding Medicaid and Medicare, too. Many of us spend every working day caring for the most vulnerable in society.
world. But workers we still able to organize successfully there. In New York, because of recent changes to how the consumer directed home care program is being run in the state, these workers will have the opportunity to join our Union. After April 1, the over 250,000 workers in the Consumer Directed Personal Assistance Program (CDPAP) will be able to form a union with 1199 to negotiate better wages and terms for both themselves and the consumers they serve. (see Protecting In-Home Caregivers p. 20) It is important to remember that the current moves to take both money and rights away from working people at the national level are nothing new. According to a Time Magazine article published in 2020, the top one percent of Americans have taken $50 trillion from the bottom 90 percent over the period between 1974 and 2020. And the gap between the richest and everyone else has continued to grow since then. Nearly all the benefits of growth over the past 50 years have been captured by those at the very top.
We know that the only way we can turn this trend of ever-rising inequality around is to organize in our shops and begin to take back our share of this country’s prosperity. Standing up for fellow members at the workplace is often the first step towards understanding the importance of our elected representatives in securing the money needed for our contracts (see Delegate Profile: Anjelique Huerta, p. 18).
We know how important it is to continue funding Medicaid and Medicare, too. Many of us spend every working day caring for the most vulnerable in society (see The Work We Do: StartCare Methadone Clinic, p. 12). This work would not be possible without Medicaid. Now is not the time to throw up our hands. It is time to roll up our sleeves. As Dr. Martin Luther King once said: “I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word in reality. That is why right, temporarily defeated, is stronger than evil triumphant.”
More than 85,000 healthcare workers who make up the 1199SEIU membership in Massachusetts, praised lawmakers on December 31 for passing legislation that will improve oversight and regulation of the state’s healthcare system in response to the Steward Healthcare bankruptcy. The new legislation seeks to reduce the cost of prescription drugs and advance health equity.
“Healthcare workers saw firsthand this year what happens when companies put their demand for profit and personal gain ahead of the needs of patients—our communities suffer the consequences, and healthcare workers are left to clean up the mess,” said Tim Foley, 1199SEIU executive vice-president. “We need stronger oversight, regulation and enforcement to better protect our healthcare system from future bad actors and new market entrants. This
bill’s expanded oversight and regulation provisions are essential to preventing a repeat of the Steward Health Care crisis by enhancing the role of the Health Policy Commission, Attorney General’s Office and other state regulators.
“At the same time,” Foley continued, “our entire healthcare system is still struggling to adjust to Steward’s collapse—and our hospitals, nursing homes, and other healthcare facilities face a worsening workforce crisis.
Healthcare workers across Massachusetts continue to struggle with inadequate pay, insufficient staffing levels, and safety issues on the job. We look forward to working together with the Legislature, Governor Healey, and all stakeholders to address these critical workforce issues in the next legislative session so we can preserve access to the high-quality healthcare Massachusetts is known for.”
The hard work of the bargaining committee at Nantucket Cottage Hospital in Massachusetts led to a contract victory in mid-January including wage increases of up to 19 percent over three years, improvements to shift differentials, and a housing stipend written into the agreement.
“I’m very grateful that we won two extra personal days in this contract, as it provides me with more time to care for my two small children,” Nantucket Cottage Hospital Chef Neil Hudson said. “It is very important to me that I get to spend time with my family.”
Neil Hudson, 1199 Chef at Nantucket Cottage Hospital.
Steward Hospital members rally for severance pay to laid off workers following the bankruptcy.
In late December, more than 300 members at Bridgewater State Hospital in southern Massachusetts celebrated a contract victory with average wage increases of 32 percent over three years, the addition of a paid Juneteenth holiday, and more opportunities for career advancement.
Charleen Corcoran, a Lead Recovery Treatment Assistant, said that the new settlement, “uplifts us to a fair, living wage which reflects our dedication and the critical nature of our work.”
Bridgewater State Hospital serves men with serious psychiatric needs who also have pending criminal charges or convictions, or who have been found not guilty by reason of insanity.
The Executive Board of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) recognized Washington D.C. member Claudia Martinez in January for her leadership and political work. Martinez is a Client Services Lead at the Whitman Walker Clinic in Alexandria, Virginia, which focuses on services for the LGBTQ+ population.
A leader in and out of the shop, Martinez participated in several Weekend Warriors canvassing trips this past political season and helped recruit other members from her shop to join in as well, some for the first time. She’s always willing to step up and support other 1199ers, and often volunteers to help Spanish-speaking members who need language support.
Bridgewater State Hospital members celebrate contract victory.
(L to R): Raul Hernandez, Claudia Martinez and Joyce Jackson canvassing for Angela Alsobrooks, helping her to become a U.S. Senator in Maryland.
MASSACHUSETTS
More than two-hundred 1199SEIU and SEIU Local 200United members in Rochester celebrated and honored the life, legacy, and contributions of Dr. Martin
Luther King Jr. on January 20, during the 44th annual commemorative event held at University of Rochester Medical Center. Members were joined by Rochester Mayor and keynote speaker Malik Evans; the Honorable Judge Van Henri White; NYS
Assembly Member Demond Meeks; NYS Assembly Member Jen Lunsford; NYS
Assembly Member Sarah Clark; Monroe County Council Member Mary Lupien; Monroe County Deputy Majority Leader William Burgess; and County Legislator Ricky Frazier. 1199 members and dignitaries enjoyed poetry, spoken word, musical solos, and performances honoring the work of Dr. King
MASSACHUSETTS
1199ers at Tobey Hospital, in Wareham, Massachusetts, near Cape Cod, reached a tentative agreement with Southcoast Health system on January 10, which includes 6.5 percent across-the-board wage increases over the life of the contract.
Management finally moved on the members’ economic demands after six months of negotiations after the Union mounted an informational picket on January 9. The settlement also includes step increases, the addition of universal training pay, and increases to differentials.
The 100 workers in the bargaining unit include, housekeepers, dietary workers, CNAs and phlebotomists. Most members live in Wareham, so this contract is also an investment in the local community.
Tobey Hospital members celebrate victory.
Local elected representatives attend MLK celebration.
Commemorating a Pioneering Chronicler of 1199 Member Activism.
Dan North worked for 1199’s local and national publications for more than thirty years—from 1968 until his 1999 retirement.
During his long tenure, he established standards that stood as the gold standard for exacting and inspirational journalism that focused on workers whether in the workplace, the union hall or the community.
As this edition was going to press, relatives, friends and coworkers of the renowned Union
chronicler were scheduled to gather at the 1199 headquarters in Manhattan on February 7 to celebrate North’s life and contributions to the movement.
The esteemed labor journalist died at age 89 on July 11, 2024, in Jersey City, NJ, after a long struggle with lymphoma and Parkinson’s disease.
One of the main reasons he began work at 1199 in the 1960s was because the leadership was committed to ensuring that
(first version originally published by Dan North in a 1996 issue of the 1199 Magazine)
Number of Americans who have become uninsured since the summer of 1994: 2 million
Number of Americans who would likely become uninsured if ACA were partially repealed: 32 million
Share of income the average American family spent on health care in 1991: 11.7%
Share of income the average American family pays today: 18.7%
Percentage by which American citizens exceed citizens of other industrialized countries in the share of their health care costs they pay: 25%
Percentage by which American citizens exceed citizens of other industrialized countries in the share of their health care costs they pay out-of-pocket today: 53%
Average CEO compensation (cash & stock) for 7 largest for-profit HMOS: $7 million
Total compensation of the six major national health insurers in 2023 put together: $123 million
Healthcare administrative costs in 1994: $100 billion
Healthcare administrative costs in 2021: $455 million
Share of total health care expenditure: 11%
Share of total health care expenditure today: 30%
Statistics about the corporatization of health care, were published by Dan North in the 1996 edition of the 1199 Magazine . Nearly three decades later, it is clear that the problem is even worse.
(Continued from page 9) 1199 News highlighted the members achievements in winning strong contracts and holding elected representatives at local, state and national levels to account.
The effectiveness of North’s work was reflected in the countless awards 1199 News garnered from the International Labor Communications Association— representing labor publications and media production departments across the nation—and the Metro New York Labor Communications Council.
During North’s last year as editor of 1199 News, Metro contest judges said of the publication, “Each issue is a feast for the eyes... A special ingredient is the voice of the members, whether in letters to
the editor, original poetry or essays. And 1199 News reminds us that the concerns of the labor movement encompass justice and struggle for all the world’s workers.”
Born in 1935 in the midst of the Great Depression, North was raised among communists and socialists in Croton, NY. He earned degrees in anthropology at New York City’s Columbia University where he worked on the student newspaper and San Francisco State University. Following his graduation, North worked as a reporter for the San Francisco Examiner.
Later, North married Margaret Stoughton and returned to Croton with their two sons, Dave and Sam. In 1992, he married Tara Levy, a labor lawyer, and the couple settled in Jersey City.
In retirement, North continued to edit the 1199 magazine. He also completed “Not for Bread Alone,” the memoir of Moe Foner, widely considered the dean of public relations within the labor movement. It was Foner who hired North in 1968.
In retirement, North was able to pursue his love of the outdoors. Two of his books, “The Slow Walker” and “November Sun” both published by Black Trumpet Press, chronicle his walks.
He also volunteered for many years at Hudson Cradle, a facility for border babies in Jersey City where North held homeless infants.
North is survived by his wife, Tara Levy, and two sons, David and Samuel and four grandchildren and one great-granddaughter.
During his long tenure, he established standards that stood as the gold standard for exacting and inspirational journalism that focused on workers whether in the workplace, the union hall or the community.
Members who work at the StartCare methadone clinic in Bushwick, Brooklyn, are dedicated to providing compassionate and empathetic care to people who are trying to turn their lives around after becoming addicted to opioids. The risk of death from overdose has increased substantially because of the prevalence of the synthetic opioid, fentanyl; so the work of 1199ers at StartCare is literally lifesaving. Overdose deaths have reached epidemic proportions in NYC. In 2023 there were 3,046 New Yorkers who died from overdose compared with 391 people who lost their lives to homicide and 265 who were killed in traffic accidents.
Fentanyl began flooding into the street drug market roughly 15 years ago because it is 50 times more potent than heroin, yet much cheaper to produce, so it yields much greater profits for drug cartels. In 2023, fentanyl was present in 80 percent of all NYC overdose deaths. The over-prescription of opioids such as OxyContin and Percocet beginning in the 1990s also played a part. OxyContin is highly addictive and
some patients who were no longer able to obtain prescriptions turned to street heroin instead. Users are often unaware that the drugs they are purchasing contain fentanyl.
StartCare is a community-focused, Black-founded and BIPOC-operated organization that has been leading the way in delivering care for New Yorkers seeking health support since 1969. Union members provide comprehensive, culturally responsive, and compassionate care for individuals, families, and communities. With a specialized focus on addiction recovery, mental health care, and biomedical research, StartCare operates six community-based locations across New York and provides care for 3,000 to 4,000 participants each year. Members recently ratified their third Union contract, including 11 percent across the board wage increases over three years. For Counselors, the average increase was 17 percent. The agreement also included longevity bonuses and added a $2,000 raise for all staff who spoke Spanish.
1. “Just yesterday a patient called me because he felt like he wanted to use,” says Ruby Cedeño, a Senior Counselor at StartCare for 13 years. “If I hadn’t picked up the phone, who knows what might have happened.” If a person has been clean for a couple of weeks they are at greater risk of overdosing if they start using again.
“I told him it’s normal to get cravings and we did some breathing exercises together. It is important to keep talking to shake your feelings. If you want to cry, cry,” says Cedeño, “Addiction burns bridges and people sometimes feel they have no one to talk to. This man was in foster care and abused by his caregivers and also has a lot of trauma from being incarcerated.
“It is very sad what people have been exposed to. Their parents may have been addicts, so they never learned coping skills. We teach them how to manage their feelings. Many suffer from depression, bipolar disorder and anxiety. Sometimes we refer them to a psychiatrist at another one of our locations.”
Cedeño used to work at Narco Freedom in Red Hook, Brooklyn for 11 years. She has a bachelor’s degree and a CASAC qualification and would like to use the Union’s Training and Upgrading Fund to train as a social worker and become a supervisor at StartCare. “I like working here. I can walk to work.”
Cedeño understands the importance of fighting to protect Medicaid for both 1199ers and her clients. Ahead of the November election, she canvassed for Laura Gillen on Long Island and helped her flip the 4th U.S. Congressional District blue.
“There are 250 patients who walk through our doors every day, so there is never a dull moment. So much of the street heroin is laced with fentanyl. We are in the business of saving lives,” says Cedeño.
2. Danielle Krizni has a wealth of experience as a Counselor, having worked at a Northwell Health clinic in Canarsie for 25 year before coming to StartCare three years ago. After a death in the family, she left the field for 18 months and Northwell could only offer her a position in Staten Island on her return. Working at StartCare in Bushwick was much more convenient and her commute is only 17 minutes now.
“The caseloads at StartCare are higher, but I can manage that because of my experience. I’m not a person who likes to sit still and I’ve never liked looking at the clock,” she said.
“I feel like everything that people do in life is because of trauma. These are just people who don’t have coping skills. Some are homeless and hungry, others are moody and aggressive. But I know how to diffuse the situation. It is about letting them know that they are important, so they feel heard,” says Krizni. “It is important that you don’t make them feel like a nobody.
“When I was younger, I would go home and talk to other counselors about the day. I used to take things personally and blame myself. At my age now, I’m done with worrying about the little things.
“When I started 25 years ago, I was not nearly as concerned about people dying as I am now. These clinics keep people alive. If they didn’t exist, even more people would die of heroin overdoses.”
–
“A lot of our patients feel overlooked. They appreciate how we treat them here, without stigma, like anyone else. We give them a level of respect that they don’t always get in the outside world.”
LPN at StartCare
3. Working at StartCare for the past 10 months as a CMT has opened KC Michael Uzoma to the idea of building a career in healthcare for himself.
“CMTs are the first face you encounter when you come to Start,” says Uzoma. “I have to tell people when their physical is overdue and when they need to do a urine toxicology test. People can be very aggressive, but you have to act professionally and help them to calm down. Sometimes I make coffee for them to help them feel more relaxed and put them at their ease.”
After getting his CMT qualification, Uzoma joined the U.S. Navy and attended their training facility in Chicago. But he missed New York and worked here as a contact tracer during COVID. He also worked for the Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA) recording subway and bus employees’ sick time during the pandemic.
“I like it here at Start because now am talking to people face-toface and building relationships with
them. I work as a floater in different clinics and it’s my job to take their vitals before they see the provider.
“I see more doors opening in the fields of EKG and phlebotomy and I want to take advantage of the Union’s educational benefits to increase my skills.”
4. Gloria Jones just started working as an LPN at StartCare nine months ago. Before that she worked in nursing homes and home care. “I wanted to be in a facility rather than a home setting. I just had a daughter, who is my first child, so I wanted the benefits and regular hours,” she said.
Her day starts at around 6am when they set up the dispensary so that they can open the doors at 6.45am on the dot. “People are already lined up and take their place one the line very seriously,” says Jones who alternates between dispensing methadone and providing primary care on a weekly basis.
“Patients tell us great stories. It is good to have the chance to in-
teract with them. We had a patient welcome their first grandchild recently. We always want to see them do great,” says Jones.
Jones hopes to grow her career in the healthcare field at StartCare. She would like to go back to school to become an RN, with the help of the Union education benefits.
“A lot of our patients feel overlooked,” says Jones, “They appreciate how we treat them here, without stigma, like anyone else. We give them a level of respect that they don’t always get in the outside world.”
5. “I think God put me here for a purpose,” says Winsome DaleyLewis, an 1199 Delegate and LPN who has worked at StartCare for 20 years. “People who come here are going through stuff. I can tell when they are not having a good day. I take them aside for a talk. We give them encouragement and lift them up.
“Sometimes people will be gone for a few years and then come
back. We tell them it is nothing to feel bad about. We all fall down.
The point is to get back up again. The fact that you came back to get some help says something about you. A lot of people who come here are in and out of jail. We call them Mr. and Ms. and it boosts their morale. They are not a number. They are human.”
Daley-Lewis doesn’t do this work for the money, “If I was here for the paycheck I would be long gone. I love my patients. They share stuff with me that they won’t share with anybody else. We’ve built up trust over the years.
Working on the medical side, it is part of Daley-Lewis’s job to take swabs from patients to make sure they are not taking heroin. They need to be clean to have their 90-day methadone prescriptions renewed.
“It is never a dull moment.
Sometimes we get cussed out.
Sometimes they come back and apologize. The staff here are like family, and we lean on each other,”
says Daley-Lewis.
“Our clients have been through a lot. They may have been abused sexually or physically. That is all they know. People make a lot of assumptions about them. These people are not just addicts. They are people. Some have to relocate to another clinic to get away from a family member who is abusing them.
As a member of the 1199SEIU bargaining committee, Daley-Lewis, recently helped negotiate the third contract with StartCare, which was ratified last month. Members first organized with 1199 in 2018.
She has seen many changes over the past two decades. “We’re seeing a lot more people at risk of overdose nowadays.” Sometimes staff have to run outside and administer naxolone or call EMS for someone who is waiting on line for methadone.
“We’re here for the underdogs, says Daley-Lewis. “A lot of times their family doesn’t want to be bothered by them.”
Congress is threatening to slash funding which provides a lifeline for more than 72 million Americans in favor of billionaires’ tax breaks.
The national fightback against the Republican extremists who want to slash Medicaid funding to pay for tax breaks for billionaires began in early January, even before the current administration was sworn in.
On January 8, Union members joined the Healthcare Education Project, faith leaders, community members and health care advocates for “Hands off Medicaid” rallies outside the offices of three Republican Congress members in New York State.
As healthcare workers, 1199ers know better than most how crucial Medicaid money is when it comes to looking after seniors and keeping children healthy. In New York, almost half the population relies on Medicaid for their healthcare.
Nevertheless, the incoming Congress is threatening to cut Medicaid funding to pay for tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans. This would mean ripping away health care from millions of
families who count on it— children, single parents, seniors, people of color, rural Americans, workers whose employers don’t provide health insurance, and people with disabilities. Medicaid is the largest health insurance program in the country. The consequences of any cuts to Medicaid would touch nearly every household in America.
“I’m out here today in the freezing cold because so many of our seniors depend on Medicaid, but I’m worried about the program’s future,” said Sheike Ward-Kidd, an 1199 Activities Aide at The Grand Rehabilitation & Nursing in Great Neck who spoke at the January 8 press conference held outside U.S. Congressman Nick LaLota’s office in Hauppage, Long Island.
She further added, “Where would my residents go if extremist politicians slashed the program to pay for huge tax cuts for their billionaire donors? Not only would my residents lose access to their healthcare, their medicine, their meals, their activities, their friends and their caregivers, but they would lose the only home they now have if the extremists have their way.”
Sandra Abegg, an 1199 Respiratory Therapist working at the Northern Manor Nursing Home in Rockland County, New York, marched outside the office of U.S. Congressman Mike Lawler in Pearl River, calling on him to stand with her residents and everyone else from District 17 and reject Medicaid cuts—like he promised.
“I’ve been a Respiratory Therapist for 19 years and I’ve helped thousands of patients on ventilator during that time,” Abegg said. “My patients depend on Medicaid and Medicare for essential services that my colleagues and I are providing. Seven million New Yorkers, from expecting mothers to people with disabilities, depend on Medicaid. It is only fair that we treat the patients with the dignity and care that they deserve.
“Not only would my residents lose access to their healthcare, their medicine, their meals, their activities, their friends and their caregivers, but they would lose the only home they now have if the extremists have their way.”
– Sheike WardKidd, 1199 Activities Aide at The Grand Rehabilitation & Nursing in Great Neck, NY
“My fellow Union members and I know that if Congress cuts Medicaid, our patients will suffer. Our facilities will be forced to cut services and also the staff. When patient to caregiver ratios increase it becomes impossible to provide the quality care these residents deserve.”
Milly Silva, 1199SEIU
Sandra Abegg, 1199 Respiratory Therapist (left) with Milly Silva, 1199SEIU Secretary Treasurer, at the rally in Pearl River, NY.
1199 Activities Aide Sheike Ward-Kidd, makes a graphic statement to Republican congressman Nick LaLota in Hauppage, Long Island.
Secretary Treasurer, added: “We are here today to raise the alarm that federal Medicaid cuts by the incoming administration would have a devastating impact on millions of Americans. Our message is simple: all elected leaders, regardless of party affiliation, must totally reject any attempts to weaken the Medicaid program.”
1199 Delegate Saditau Bangura, has worked for United Cerebral Palsy on Long Island for 16 years. As a mother of four who has lived in Suffolk County for two decades, she wanted U.S. Congressman Andrew Garbarino, representing District 2, to hear her voice.
“I love my job so much,” Bangura said outside Rep Garbarino’s office in Patchogue. “I love the individuals I work with so much. Without Medicaid, I could not go to work. Without Medicaid my individuals would not be taken care of. Every day I come to work, I see them smiling—and I love to see the smile on their faces.”
The money that pays Bangura’s wages comes from Medicaid and helps take care of her children.
“Seven million New Yorkers need Medicaid, including my motherin-law who has cancer. Without Medicaid I could not take my mother-in-law for chemo. Without Medicaid I could not go to work. I know what Medicaid is doing for my family. I know what Medicaid is doing for my job,” she added.
The growing and diverse Hands off Medicaid coalition includes over 650 ministers, priests, rabbis, imams and faith leaders, who have joined together to fight for Medicaid equity as a moral and racial justice issue.
Being a good listener and stepping outside her comfort zone was the key to understanding how political action unlocks working peoples’ power.
As an 1199 Rite Aid pharmacy member in Astoria, Queens for ten years and single mother of three, Angelique Huerta already had a lot of responsibility even before she became a Delegate.
But she recognized that she was a good listener and enjoyed hearing other people’s stories, so six years ago she decided she could make a difference to her co-workers’ lives by becoming a Union Delegate.
“I wanted to advocate for the other members in my shop,” says Huerta, who works as a Shift Supervisor. “At first, I was not interested in politics outside of Rite Aid. At the time, I barely voted.”
It was not until her 1199 political organizer started inviting her to community board meetings that Huerta began to realize how local politics also affected the quality of life in her community.
“There are not enough bus services in our area, which makes it much harder for people with disabilities two get around,” says Huerta. “There is an area near where I live that is really dangerous for pedestrians. There is a large pothole in the street that gets filled up with water when it rains, so people can’t tell how deep it is. These are the kinds of things that we can bring to our community board.”
Huerta started putting the pieces together about how funding decisions that affected her and her fellow members’ lives were being made at the local, state and national levels.
“If we don’t get engaged with politics, the decisions made are going to affect us anyway,” she says. “We can’t stay silent. If we don’t fight, we will end up being stamped on.”
The more she got involved in political action, the more she began to feel the power that ordinary people could wield by coming together in numbers and lobbying their elected representatives.
She attended the Albany rally in March 2023, when more than 15,000 members from all over the state marched around the capital to close the Medicaid funding gap. Huerta persuaded five other members to come with her, who had not been aware of the action. “When we walk around and our elected representatives see purple, they can see power,” she told them.
Along with a group of fellow members from Queens, Huerta visited New York State Senator Jessica Ramos in her Albany office to tell her firsthand about the needs of the Elmhurst community
in NYS District 13, that she represents.
In 2024, Huerta joined the Weekend Warriors and canvassed for Laura Gillen in U.S. Congressional District 4 every weekend for months. There she helped the Long Island candidate unseat the one term Republican incumbent and flip the district back to the Democrats. Huerta supported Gillen partly because of her pledge to protect access to reproductive health care, including abortion, as well as in vitro fertilization and contraception.
The razor thin majority which the Republicans now hold in Congress is due in large part to the seats that 1199 members helped to flip. There will be a special election coming up soon in New York State which could change the balance of power nationally, if the Democratic candidate were to be elected.
Originally from Mexico, Huerta is a firm believer in promoting diversity and fighting against discrimination. Since the extremist Republican administration took office, Huerta says she no longer feels safe.
“I feel devastated by the results of the November election, and I worry about my future, my kid’s future and my neighbors future,”
says Huerta.
Healthcare costs are already too high, and she sees many people having to pay out of pocket for their prescriptions at Rite Aid as more and more insurance companies cut their members’ benefits.
Many people in her community rely on Medicaid, so Huerta sees firsthand how important it is to preserve and expand those benefits.
“It is not easy for many people right now. But we have to think positively and not give up. We have survived worse and at least we know that women’s rights are protected in New York State,” says Huerta. “I’m hoping for a better future, especially if more young people get involved in unions. If we all step out of our comfort zones and come together, I know we can make a change.”
“If we don’t get engaged with politics, the decisions made are going to affect us anyway. We can’t stay silent. If we don’t fight, we will end up being stamped on.”
–Anjelique Huerta
1199 CDPAP members rally in Albany, NY, to maintain state funding for the program.
Dianne Dixon, an 1199 PSA at Brookdale Hospital in Brooklyn,
Here’s how 1199 worked with New York State to protect a program serving hundreds of thousands of caregivers and those they care for from greedy middlemen.
People in New York State who provide consumer directed care to those who need it have been receiving wages through the Consumer Directed Personal Assistance Program (CDPAP) since 1995.
The program has allowed thousands of individuals, including many with disabilities who rely on Medicaid to live independently and with dignity in their own homes, with the paid support of a caregiver of their choice.
In 2012, in an attempt to save money, NYS privatized the home care system through managed care. But instead of cutting costs, in CDPAP, middlemen agencies began extracting billions of dollars in profit out of the tax-payer funded CDPAP home care system. The program grew to cost over 9 billion dollars a year.
In 2024, Governor Hochul and the Legislature enacted a reform intended to simplify the program and save monies that had been spent by 700 different middle men agencies.
Thousands of the CDPAP caregivers have organized with 1199 in recent years. Once the
reform is complete, after April 1, 2025, our Union hopes to be able to talk to the over 250,000 workers in the CDPAP program in NYS about how being part of our Union can make their work and the lives of the consumers they serve better.
Delmy Lopez has looked after her parents for the past four years under the CDPAP program in the Bronx. She started out helping her father, then when he transitioned to an independent living facility, her mother became ill and needed more help.
“There are a lot of irregularities with the agency who signs my checks now,” says Lopez, and that is why she signed a card stating her intention to vote “yes” on a union ballot for 1199.
For example, the agency required her to prove that she was vaccinated against COVID and the flu. But because she did not immediately send in the documents, they were continuing to withhold seven days pay for work she completed after she was vaccinated. “It is an abuse of authority. They have robbed a week of work from me. I cannot
get a hold of them on the telephone to explain the problem,” she said, “That is why I need a Union organizer to have my back.”
Lopez knows her rights. Before joining the CDPAP program, Lopez was a home care worker for 18 years.
As of January 6, the new fiscal intermediary, known as PPL began reaching out to consumers in the CDPAP program to start the transition process, which is expected to be complete by March 28.
In an unusual step, Dr Jim McDonald, the NYS Health Commissioner, created a public service video to reassure the public.
“I’m here to respond to lies being spread about the future of home health care in NY. There are businesses pushing a misinformation campaign to protect their own profits. It is meant to scare you into thinking that New Yorkers will lose access to home care. That’s false. Your Governor and I would never let that happen.
“Our plan will protect New Yorkers who rely on home care. It will protect vulnerable people from
businesses that haven’t played by the rules. And it will protect taxpayers from middlemen that have abused Medicaid funding. If you’re a CDPAP home care user, you can keep your trusted caregiver. If you’re a caregiver, it will be easier for you to get paid. New Yorkers will get better care and better service at a better price. That is the truth.”
Currently working with the Accent Care agency in the CDPAP program, Colin Vassell, says he is ready to sign a card with 1199. Before joining Accent Care two years ago, he worked with the White Glove home care agency which unionized with 1199, shortly after he left.
He currently looks after a 13-year-old boy with autism on the weekends for 20 hours a week. He was recommended for the job by a friend of his mother’s.
“I know that power lies in providing quality care and strength. As workers we need a voice to bargain for better conditions. Coming together is the best way to look after ourselves.”
“Our plan will protect New Yorkers who rely on home care. It will protect vulnerable people from businesses that haven’t played by the rules. And it will protect taxpayers from middlemen that have abused Medicaid funding.”
– Dr. Jim McDonald NYS Health Commissioner
Over 30 “facilitator” organizations, will assist consumers and their personal assistants with the transition to PPL. Scan here for frequently asked questions.
Throughout 1199’s history, mobilizing a committed and united membership in partnership with community and progressive allies has helped steer the Union through many storms. The leadership nourished three terrains of struggle— the workplace, the union hall, and members’ communities.
After defying the odds by organizing poor hospital workers in the late 1950s, the Union felt ready
to tackle any obstacle in its path. Not only had it emboldened its members, but it had also roused the progressive community.
Its support came not just from liberals and moderates like Eleanor Roosevelt, widow of former President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, but from such militant activists as Malcolm X. Not long before his 1965 assassination, the Black Muslim leader said, “1199 was not afraid
the council offered a compromise of six percent.
Although the increase fell short, members voted overwhelmingly to end the strike. The members had won more than a small wage increase. They boasted that they were the only workers in the nation to strike against a grossly unfair policy that curbed wages while leaving corporate profits intact.
1199 organizing director Elliott Godoff said at the time, “One of 1199’s primary tasks was to help members learn how to assert their rights not only on the job, but also as citizens of their community and their country.”
After a separate strike in 1976, the Union received a disappointing arbitration settlement. One year later, 1199 increased its clout by establishing its League of Registered Nurses Division. The Union regrouped in 1978 and forced Democratic Governor Hugh Carey to the bargaining table. The workers won a 14.5 percent wage increase over two years, helping to compensate for the shortfall in the previous contract.
idency. 1199, in whose office the campaign was headquartered, helped Jackson carry New York City in the Democratic primaries. One year later, 1199 worked with young Jackson campaign activists, among them former Mayor Bill de Blasio and Patrick Gaspard, former 1199 officer and President Barack Obama’s political director, to elect the city’s first Black mayor, David Dinkins.
In 1998, 1199 became a more formidable force within labor and the progressive movement when it finally merged with SEIU and several SEIU locals. By the close of the decade, 1199 reported that its work had forced Albany to back down on more than $11 billion in proposed Medicaid cuts.
In 1999, the Union and the Greater New York Hospital Association (GNYHA) formed the Health Care Education Project (HEP). The partnership developed into New York’s most effective advocate for quality, affordable healthcare.
“One of 1199’s primary tasks was to help members learn how to assert their rights not only on the job, but also as citizens of their community and their country.”
of upsetting the status quo or the apple cart of those people who are running City Hall or sitting in Albany or sitting in the White House.”
The Union’s most significant victory in the 1960s was pressuring the New York State legislature to pass a bill extending collective bargaining rights to New York City voluntary hospitals, and then getting Republican Governor Nelson Rockefeller to sign it.
The 1970s posed new political challenges. Even though 1199 had ratified a two-year contract granting wage increases of 7.5 percent in June 1972, then President Richard Nixon’s Pay Board—ostensibly to curb inflation—limited increases to 5.5 percent in the second year of the pact.
On Nov. 5, 1973, some 30,000 workers walked out of 48 voluntary hospitals. At the time, it was the largest strike ever in the healthcare industry. Federal officials originally refused to negotiate. But on Nov. 12,
Mindful of the need to meet the challenges of an increasingly difficult organizing environment, Leon Davis spoke at the 1978 convention of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) and raised the prospect of a joint effort to organize all health care workers into one union.
Internal divisions within 1199 during the first half of the 1980s derailed merger plans and led to other setbacks. But the victory of the reformist Save Our Union (SAO) slate in 1986 returned the Union to its former progressive path.
One of SAO’s first campaigns in 1987 was the organization of home care workers—a vital sector of the healthcare workforce that other unions were reluctant to organize. The leadership drew comparisons between the plight of those workers —primarily women of color—and that of impoverished voluntary hospital workers thirty years earlier.
In this “Crusade for Justice,” the Union once again called on its allies, among them representatives of the women’s movement, Manhattan Borough President David Dinkins, New York’s Cardinal John O’Connor and the Rev. Jesse Jackson.
The next year, Jackson mounted a campaign for the U.S. pres -
“The Affordable Care Act would not have passed without the work of HEP,” declares Dennis Rivera, former president of 1199, on HEP’s website. Former President Barack Obama officials have praised HEP and1199 for its work in helping to win passage of the ACA in the face of stubborn Republican opposition.
The ACA, although falling short of full universal coverage, has cut the uninsured rate by more than half. It also has expanded Medicaid and prevented insurance plans from denying coverage or charging higher premiums based on preexisting health conditions. Through the work of HEP, and in state capitals throughout 1199’s regions, members have been on the frontlines defending and extending health care and a better life for all in both friendly and hostile political environments. During the next four years, members will continue to point their collective power in the direction of preserving and expanding affordable healthcare for the most vulnerable in society.
Dan North worked for the Union’s local and national publications, including the 1199 Magazine from 1968 until his retirement in 1999. Members commemorated his life and contributions to the movement at the union’s HQ on February 7. The esteemed labor journalist died on July 11, 2024, aged 89. See page 9.
