Massachusetts lawmakers should pass bipartisan workplace violence reforms before the legislative session ends.

By Cari Medina, Katie Murphy, and Steve Walsh
Cari Medina is executive vice president of 1199SEIU. Katie Murphy is president of the Massachusetts Nurses Association. Steve Walsh is president and CEO of the Massachusetts Health & Hospital Association.

Every 36 minutes someone working at a Massachusetts hospital is subject to a verbal threat, physical assault, or other form of abuse. Workplace violence has become an unacceptable — and all too familiar — part of their daily work, and it is driving many to leave the field. Now, with just weeks left in the legislative session, state lawmakers should pass reforms that would help protect health care workers.

The workplace violence crisis has grown in prominence since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. Health care facilities are emotionally charged settings by nature, but tensions among patients and visitors have escalated in recent years due to a range of pressures, from COVID-related safety restrictions to the long wait times that many are now experiencing.