Healthcare Workers Fight Back Against Service Closures and Land Huge Victory

In the wake of the so-called “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” that will slash federal funding for healthcare services, many healthcare facilities throughout the country are cutting services and staff, and even closing facilities — deepening the staffing crisis that we’ve already been facing for years.

Earlier this year, Kaleida Health in Buffalo, NY announced the planned closure or drastic reduction of several vital services throughout the region, including the Medical Rehab Unit (MRU). Kaleida’s MRU currently serves an average of 26 to 29 patients per day, and the planned closure had called for reducing beds to 16, likely eliminating more than 20 jobs and leaving many patients without access to rehab services.

"There's just not enough medical rehab beds at Erie County Medical Center, and Catholic Health, and now here," said CWA 1168 President Cori Gambini at a public meeting in February. "Everybody's cutting those beds, right? The focus has lately been on acute care. So, we can save a life, and we'll take care of you, and they do a great job, we do a great job here doing that, but when it comes down to rehab, you're going to be on your own."

CWAers have also shared powerful personal testimony about the vital importance of the MRU, and written dozens of letters to the New York State Department of Health about the dangers of closing the unit.

On March 24, CWA Local 1168 announced a major victory: the DOH has halted the Kaleida MRU bed reductions, and ordered Kaleida to keep the unit open for at least six months while an independent company conducts a community needs assessment on the issue. 

This is not the end of our fight to keep services open and adequately staffed, and now we’ll need to ensure that the proposal and situation are thoroughly examined, but this is an incredible victory that shows the power we have when we stand together and fight for our patients and our facilities!