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About 1,300 nurses at Kaiser Permanente’s Los Angeles Medical Center are set to begin a four-day strike Thursday. The nurses, members of the California Nurses Assn. and National Nurses United, are seeking a contract to improve staffing levels, wages and patient care. The nurses contend that inadequate staffing levels at the hospital harm patient care and don’t allow for proper rest and meal breaks. (Edelen, 6/23)

The strike by nearly 5,000 nurses against Allina Health in the Twin Cities continued Wednesday with no resolution. The weeklong walkout is centered on health insurance for the nurses, which work in five area hospitals and are represented by the Minnesota Nurses Association. Wednesday was the strike’s fourth day. The striking nurses say they will return to work at 7 a.m., Sunday, June 26. (6/22)

The Massachusetts Nurses Association has threatened a one-day strike at Brigham and Women's Hospital on June 27 if the hospital and the union can't come to an agreement on a new contract. It would be the first strike in 30 years by nurses in a Boston hospital. The nursing union is asking for larger wage raises than the hospital has proposed, better insurance options for new nurses, and a better staff to patient ratio. (Doherty and Bruzek, 6/22)