Twenty years earlier, SEIU Nurses won nurse-to-patient ratios in California. We continue to lead the nation as the only state with these regulations that protect both patients and Registered Nurses.

The problem was that there was no enforcement of those regulations. Too many California hospitals ignore these minimum staffing levels in Emergency Rooms, Intensive Care Units, Labor & Delivery Floors and other acute care hospital units. This endangers patients, is an unnecessary stress on families, and puts nurses’ licenses and livelihoods at risk.

That's why we worked with Senator Leyva to introduce the new "Stop Repeat Offender Hospitals" law (SB 227), effective January 1, 2020, which brings unannounced inspections specifically looking at nurse-to-patient staffing ratios and establishes a fine structure for violating those safe staffing regulations (regardless of patient outcome).

Here’s how we won this:

Read more here. And be sure to check out how to enforce this law here.