MRU Public Meeting Update

As a direct result of the powerful efforts of our members, patients, and community allies, the proposed cuts to the Medical Rehabilitation Unit (MRU) at Buffalo General have been paused. This victory was secured through our collective action: the dozens of letters sent to the Department of Health (DOH) and Kaleida, the massive turnout for the public meeting, powerful testimony, and unwavering support from elected officials.

An announcement was made on Wednesday, March 11th, that the DOH has ordered Kaleida to keep the unit open. An outside company will now conduct a community needs assessment to determine whether Kaleida can proceed with their drastic bed reduction. For the next six months, the MRU will remain open.

The fight culminated on February 19, 2026, when Swift Auditorium was filled to capacity as union members, healthcare workers, physicians, patients, and community allies gathered to oppose Kaleida Health's proposal to slash the MRU by more than 50% from 34 beds to 16.

The testimony made clear that this closure would impact patient recovery, family stability, hospital capacity, and the future of rehabilitation care in Western New York. Nearly every speaker opposed the proposal, offering perspectives from the bedside, the clinic, and lived experience.

While Kaleida leadership described the reduction as part of broader system changes, CWA leadership and frontline staff strongly challenged that framing, calling the proposal a business decision with serious human consequences. Speakers emphasized that:

• MRU patients are medically complex and require intensive, coordinated therapy.
• Reducing beds will delay discharges and create ripple effects throughout the hospital.
• Acute and sub-acute settings do not provide the same intensity or continuity of rehabilitation.
• Vulnerable patients will be pushed into inadequate levels of care.

Rehabilitation physicians with decades of experience described a steady erosion of inpatient rehab capacity in the region, urging a pause on the cuts and calling for a coordinated regional plan.

Former patients and family members shared powerful testimony about how MRU care restored their ability to walk, speak, feed themselves, and return home. Several contrasted their experience with sub-acute facilities, saying there is "no comparison" in intensity or outcomes. One family member described how MRU transformed their loved one from wheelchair dependence to assisted walking, while another credited the unit with making independent living possible after a catastrophic stroke.

The Department of Health and Kaleida also heard from dozens of you who sent letters and emails detailing the harm this bed closure would cause. Thank you.

Support from Elected Officials

Our elected leaders stood with CWA, the patients, and the workers affected, amplifying our message and demanding accountability. NYS Senator April N.M. Baskin attended the meeting virtually and NYS Assemblyman Jon D. Rivera attended in person. Both made their positions against the cuts clear. Congressman Tim Kennedy and NYS Assemblyman Bill Conrad also weighed in with strong statements against cuts.

Our Union's Position

This is about more than beds. It is about dignity, recovery, and whether Western New York will invest in helping people live fully after catastrophic illness. We will continue organizing and demanding that the state fully examine the impact of this proposal on patients, families, and workers.

Recovery is not a luxury — it is essential healthcare.

Solidarity.