FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: November 27, 2020
Contact: Halimah Elmariah | helmariah@kivvit.com | 201-290-9753

**MEDIA ADVISORY FOR TOMORROW, SATURDAY NOVEMBER 28**

ALBANY— As COVID numbers continue to rise, members of the New York State Nurses Association at Albany Medical Center will be joined by labor leaders and elected officials to hold a press conference tomorrow demanding that hospital management stop forcing nurses to re-use dirty personal protection equipment (PPE).

For example, the guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) say that masks should ONLY be re-used if a facility does NOT have a 90 day supply. The state says all hospitals have a 90 day supply. Albany Medical Center confirms it has a 90 day supply. The question is: why are hospital executives forcing nurses to re-use masks up to 20 times on many different patients? Click here for a look at an example of the dirty masks that the hospital wants to re-use.

WHO: NYSNA Nurses at Albany Medical Center joined by elected officials and labor leaders

WHAT: Demand that Albany Med follow the rules and stop forcing nurses to re-use PPE.

WHEN: TOMORROW, Saturday, November 28 at 11AM

WHERE: Albany Medical Center, 43 New Scotland Avenue, Albany, NY

Masking and social distancing will be strictly observed.

The call for Albany Medical Center to follow the rules regarding PPEs comes on the heels of letters (attached) from city, county and state officials demanding that hospital executives return to the negotiating table to discuss a fair contract as well as remedy other COVID related issues including:

Stopping the movement of patients from floor to floor without getting the results of a COVID test back. We must make sure that the virus is not spreading from floor to floor, unit to unit. Why is Albany Medical Center mixing patient populations in a way that could easily spread the virus? Adhering to a hospital created nurse to patient crisis staffing ratio that Albany Medical Center is now actively violating. It was essential in the spring for proper patient care and it remains essential for the fall surge.

We believe that these practices create an immediate threat of harm to nurses and patients and should be immediately remedied. Albany Med must address their health and safety concerns and settle a fair contract that protects patients and nurses.

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The New York State Nurses Association (NYSNA) represents more than 42,000 members in New York State. We are New York’s largest union and professional association for registered nurses. For more information, please visit our website at  www.nysna.org