Doctors, PAs, and Other Clinicians Unionize in Massachusetts

This is a MedPage Today story. More than 230 clinicians at Cambridge Health Alliance (CHA) in Massachusetts won their union election and have received certification through the state Department of Labor Relations. About half of the group’s members are physicians, including primary care doctors, psychiatrists, and hospitalists; members also include physician assistants (PAs) and psychologists, according to SHARE CHA/AFSCME, the union representing the group. Jeremy Stricsek, MD, a primary care physician at CHA, told MedPage Today that collective discussions about ways to improve working conditions and patient care began several years ago, some of which were spurred by the pandemic. However, in the summer of 2022, organizing efforts became more serious as the group recognized that physicians and other healthcare professionals would need to unionize in order to “better advocate” for themselves and patients. Overall, there has been concern over “increasing pressure to do more with…