Image Credit: National Union of Healthcare Workers

Sacramento, August 17 (RHC)-- In the U.S. state of  California, thousands of unionized mental healthcare providers in multiple cities have gone on strike, demanding the country’s largest nonprofit healthcare organization provide better care to people who desperately need services. 

Kaiser Permanente serves some 9 million people in California.  According to the Union of Healthcare Workers, Kaiser has just one mental health provider for every 2,600 patients, forcing people to wait months for an appointment. 

Union members are also accusing Kaiser of violating treatment clinical guidelines and California state laws.  The strike comes after a year of negotiations between the National Union of Healthcare Workers and Kaiser, which has rejected union proposals to expand the workforce and improve access to care.