LAWRENCE, MA – The nurses of Lawrence General Hospital are outraged by a recent decision from hospital management to lay off staff, close services and restructure how nurses deliver patient care at the facility, particularly at a time when nurses have been struggling with inadequate RN staffing levels that compromise their ability to deliver the care their patients deserve.

National Nurses United, the nation’s largest union and professional association of registered nurses, has endorsed President Barack Obama for a second term. The 185,000 member organization’s national executive council made the endorsement at a weekend meeting.

RNs from Sutter Health hospitals around the Bay Area will be holding a colorful event Saturday evening to protest a gala black-tie event organized by Sutter for the soon-to-be-opened new facility at the Castro Valley campus, the California Nurses Association/National Nurses United announced today. Sutter, who has made over four billion in profit since 2007, has billed its event a fundraiser for the new Eden Medical Center building.

The U.S. Robin Hood Tax Campaign today applauded the introduction in Congress of a bill that would impose a tax on Wall Street speculation. Introduced by Rep. Keith Ellison, HR 6411, the Inclusive Prosperity Act, would raise up to $350 billion in annual revenues that would be used to breathe new life into Main Street communities across America, as well as international health, sustainable prosperity and environmental programs.

Registered nurses at Antelope Valley Hospital (AVH) in Lancaster, California will hold a candlelight vigil Wednesday evening to protest eroding patient care conditions at the hospital and the administration’s hard-line stance in talks for a new contract. Some 900 RNs at the facility are represented by the California Nurses Association/National Nurses United. RNs cite deteriorating care conditions, especially in safe staffing, at the hospital that they say are consistently putting patients at risk on a daily basis.