L.A. doctors' decision to unionize may spark nationwide trend

Frustrated doctors demonstrate in support of unionizing RELATED VIDEO CNN's Jennifer Auther reports on the vote by Los Angeles County doctors to unionize Windows Media 28K 80K

June 6, 1999
Web posted at: 5:14 p.m. EDT (2114 GMT)

LOS ANGELES (CNN) -- Tired of cuts in hospital budgets and ever-growing patient loads, some 800 Los Angeles County doctors unionized last week in a historic vote that may signal a nationwide trend.

The physicians, employed by Los Angeles County, voted to join the Union of American Physicians and Dentists by a 338-182 margin.

"We are reclaiming our rightful role as key decision makers in the delivery of quality patient care," said Dr. Janice Nelson of the Los Angeles County-USC Medical Center.

In 1986, one out of every three health plans was run for profit, according to data from the American Association of Health Plans. Three out of four health plans today seek to make a profit.

The AFL-CIO applauded the Los Angeles County vote: About 1,300 doctors, nurses and social workers have been laid off from county facilities in recent months, and more cuts were expected after $ 364 million in federal bailout funds ran dry.

"Doctors are upset, they are angry and they are frustrated. We are getting calls every day to join the union," said Dr. Louis Simpson at a news conference following the vote.

Simpson said the outcome was inevitable in a county where administrators were forced to make "cuts and more cuts" in hospital budgets despite an ever-growing patient load.

Only 6 percent of some 600,000 practicing physicians in the United States belong to a union, but Simpson predicted that number would grow "like wildfire throughout the country."

Doctors and union officials said their core concerns include job security, deteriorating working conditions and a need to improve patient care for indigent populations.

The American Medical Association is less enthusiastic about the decision to unionize. The AMA supports doctors' rights to bargain collectively, but also holds the position that going on strike does not fall within the medical code of ethics.

"The collective efforts of physicians can be better served, both legally and professionally, by the AMA and local medical societies rather than by labor unions," the association declared after the Los Angeles County vote.

A sizable minority of doctors opposed unionization. Dr. Ronald Koretz of Olive View-UCLA Medical Center spent $400 mailing letters that urged colleagues to vote against the measure.

"The Hippocratic oath states everything I do shall be for the benefit of my patient," Koretz said. "Any work action, no matter what it is, can't possibly be for the benefit of the patient, so I think its unethical to strike."

Correspondent Jennifer Auther contributed to this report.

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