Friend,

Aida Valdivia is a California mental health professional with more than a
decade’s experience who works for Kaiser in L.A. -- where she regularly
has to see 14-16 patients per day, well above the industry standard of
4-5. (1)

That’s why for the past 6 months, she hasn’t seen a single patient.
Instead, she and 2,400 of her Southern California colleagues in the Kaiser
system have been on strike, demanding better pay and a more manageable
patient caseload.(2)

This week, Aida is joining a 5-day hunger strike outside of Kaiser
headquarters to mark 6 months without a contract.

“I want our patients to know that we are serious [about their care], and
if we have to sacrifice then we’re going to go ahead and do that,” Aida
says.

[ [link removed] ]Courage California is standing in solidarity with the Kaiser mental
health workers, and they need our help to keep their strike going. Will
you join us in showing Aida and all her colleagues that we have their
backs by supporting their strike maintenance fund?

Two years ago, Kaiser agreed to a $200 million settlement with the state
of California after an investigation found that the average wait for
mental health care in their facilities was 9 days longer than allowed by
state law.(3) But, the hospital chain has done little to change its ways.

Kaiser regularly brags about its many awards.(4) However, when it comes to
mental health, it’s catastrophically failing its patients. In fact, the
American Psychological Association (APA) said that in its 20 years of
reviewing mental healthcare, "it has never seen such an egregious case of
delayed access” to care as at Kaiser.(5)

[ [link removed] ]SUPPORT THE WORKERS

Southern California NUWH workers went on strike six months ago, demanding
more manageable caseloads and pay in line with their Northern California
counterparts.(6) But instead of coming to the table, Kaiser is instead
paying for full-page Los Angeles Times ads and media spots disparaging the
mental health workers. We need to help these striking workers to keep
going.

Mental health workers are our friends and neighbors. They provide
essential care, the need for which is only rising.(7) Giant corporations
like Kaiser are counting on us ignoring this simple fact. They are hoping
that we ignore the critical needs raised by these brave workers.

We must stand in solidarity with workers on strike.

[ [link removed] ]Mental health workers are on strike for their patients. Can you show
your solidarity with the striking workers by pitching into their strike
fund?

Thank you for being in the fight!

–Irene, along with Annie, Angela, Isidra, Cecilia, Jen, and Lindsay (the
Courage team)

P.S. Can’t donate now? There’s still a way you can help! Kaiser is trying
to claim that patients are perfectly satisfied with their care, and we
know that’s not the truth! Click on the post below to share it online and
help us find people willing to speak out against Kaiser.

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Footnotes:
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Courage California (formerly Courage Campaign) makes sure our democracy works for ALL of us by fighting corruption in California politics. We believe the solution lies in exposing and solving systemic problems through strategic organizing, enhancing coordination between progressive organizations, and mobilizing civic engagement from our communities, particularly voters of color, young voters, and self-identified progressives.

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