8 Aug 20th - Aug 26th, 2026 phoenixnewtimes.com PHOENIX NEW TIMES | NEWS | FEATURE | FOOD & DRINK | ARTS & CULTURE | MUSIC | CONCERTS | CANNABIS | They say the final straw came last year, when Banner Health introduced a new policy: Administrators could dock physi- cians’ base pay by as much as $15,000 a year if the company didn’t meet certain revenue goals. Previously, only patient-care metrics could get a doctor’s pay cut. “When they announced these metrics, we were like, ‘So, we don’t care how healthy our patients are anymore? This is just profit?’” Lea said. “It’s all profit-driven, which is very bizarre to us.” In February 2025, after that policy was announced, Dr. Justin Watkins, another family medicine doctor at Gilbert Health Clinic, reached out to the Union of American Physicians and Dentists to discuss legal options. He and Lea say they want to turn the company’s priorities back toward patient care. “I’m also, of course, fighting for a pay raise,” Watkins said in a video he posted to Instagram. “We have not had a significant pay raise in many years now. There needs to be more transparency in how Banner calcu- lates our pay, our bonuses and how we’re able to earn our livings here with Banner.” Lea, Watkins and other physicians ramped up their organizing efforts and called an election after more than 30% of Banner Health physicians signed union authorization cards. In late July, NLRB offi- cials mailed ballots to the Valley’s Banner Health physicians in the Phoenix metro area. Those doctors have until Aug. 26 to vote and mail back their ballots, which offi- cials will count on Sept. 2. If the majority of Banner Health’s nearly 270 physicians vote in favor of unionizing, it will give them the power to collectively bargain with one of the country’s largest nonprofit health systems. Physicians can work toward a contract to receive more protections and pay, be part of clinic-level issues and get support in completing chronic administrative tasks. Arizona is a right-to- work state, meaning that employees cannot be forced to join a union or pay dues as a condition of keeping their job. Non-dues- paying members still benefit from the improved conditions, benefits and pay that a bargaining union secures. “These clinicians are the people that are going to be sitting at the table with their employer,” said Union of American Physicians and Dentists organizer Sebastian Gomez. “They’re the people that started this. The people that are leading this.” Banner Health did not respond to New Times’ request to comment, but they’ve pushed back against the unionizing effort online. The company created a site on their website that asks physicians to “vote NO so Banner can remain strong as One Team.” The site also criticizes the effort by writing that “unions cannot guarantee anything” and “contract negotiations take time with no guaranteed outcome.” Unfair labor practice suit The beginning of the end for Lea began in October 2025. Another physician at her health center noticed that staff incorrectly scheduled hundreds of patients on Saturdays for all of 2026. “Just looked at my schedule in 2026,” Lea said in the clinic’s physician group chat. “Every Saturday starting January 3rd is open, and my schedules are full. Someone should probably look at all the providers’ schedules because I suspect we all are working every Saturday starting January 3rd and have patients scheduled.” After another physician responded that their schedule had the same issue, Lea sent a follow-up message. “Could we make sure that patients get rescheduled timely?” she asked. “Whenever patients need to be rescheduled due to scheduling errors, I hear a lot of complaints that they were not notified until the week of, and then there are no appointments for 3 months.” A few days later, Lea received a message from her manager’s boss requesting a meeting. There, leaders told her they saw her message as implying that “your manager is incompetent and it was inap- propriate.” In Lea’s manager evaluation, which she shared with New Times, Banner Health leadership characterized Lea’s message as “uncomfortable” and said it “misaligned with Banner’s values.” Managers told her she needed to bring concerns directly to her manager or director, or else risk corrective action, which could lead to her firing. Lea believes her director escalated the incident against Lea because she often spoke up about issues related to patient care. “It definitely shook me, rattled me,” she said. “I felt like I was being targeted, prob- ably because I speak up.” After graduating from medical school, Lea started her residency at Banner Health’s medical center in downtown Phoenix. Later, she joined her longtime practice in Gilbert. “Banner is all I’ve known for my whole medical career,” Lea said. “It was very diffi- cult for me because I was ready to retire with Banner. I was very committed to the patients that I was taking care of, and my colleagues.” On Aug. 3, she started a new job at a company called CenterWell, which is a Medicare company contracted with Humana, providing senior primary care, or geriatrics. Still, because Banner kept her on payroll through August, she’ll be able to vote in the union election. “I got messages from surgeons, from neurologists, from specialists all over the Valley that had heard about it and were asking, ‘Are you OK? Oh my gosh, how did this happen?’” she said. “People were pretty shocked to hear that this could happen to someone who was working for Banner for 15 years and never caused any kind of problems or had any issues.” Lea wasn’t able to have the in-person, sentimental send-off she wanted after 15 years with the company. On Aug. 5, UAPD posted a video of Lea speaking about her suit and support for the union. Support from dozens of patients rolled into the comments. “Absolutely the best doctor I’ve had, so caring and understanding,” a user named Christina wrote. “Thank you, Dr. Lea, for being an amazing doctor and speaking out.” Hospital Drama from p 7
