Massachusetts nurses from hospitals owned by the new private-equity-backed Steward Health Care organization will take part in a protest in New York tomorrow.
Nurses from a number of states will converge at the offices of Steward’s parent firm, Cerberus Capital Management, to protest the involvement of profit-motivated private equity firms in the health care market.
The Massachusetts Nurses Association claims that Steward, which owns the former Caritas Christi hospitals in the Boston area as well as Merrimack Valley Hospital in Haverhill and Nashoba Valley Medical Center in Ayer, has cut staffing and fired nurses who raised concerns about patient care.
Christopher Murphy, a spokesman for Steward, called the protest a negotiating tactic for union nurses who are in contract talks. He said staffing has not been cut at the hospitals and staff would not be fired for speaking about patient care issues.
