Physician Unionizing Efforts Grow

August 17, 2023

Calling it a necessary step to ensure patients get the best care possible, more than 500 primary/urgent care physicians and advanced practice providers at Allina Health are moving toward unionizing. If the vote is successful, it would become the largest private-sector physician union in the country.  

At a press conference on August 16, several Allina physicians said they feel joining a union is needed to ensure that patients’ needs are met. Physicians, they argued, are being asked to do too much, to see too many patients without adequate support, and consequently many are feeling burned out and leaving the profession.  

In a statement, Allina Health said: “we deeply value the critical role our providers play in providing exceptional care to the communities we serve. We are actively engaged in listening to them and responding with changes to better support their ability to care for patients and their well-being.” 

In late March of this year, hospital-based physicians at Allina Mercy and Unity held a vote to unionize, but the results have not yet been certified.  

“The MMA recognizes the right of physicians and physicians-in-training to have their voices heard, including engaging in collective bargaining, consistent with state and/or federal law,” said MMA President Will Nicholson, MD. “Are physician unions the best response to current pressures and forces that are overwhelming many of us? That's a question each physician will need to make for themselves, considering their own circumstances.”  

The topic of collective bargaining by physicians will be part of a panel discussion at this year’s Empowering Physicians Conference on September 21 at The Marquette Hotel in downtown Minneapolis. Click here for more information.