Jan Hurley is a seasoned medical tech at Delmar's Kenwood Manor assisted living facility. 

“I’ve done other jobs for two or three months and I always come back to working with the elderly,” Hurley said. “I’ve been doing it for 30 years and I absolutely love working with [them because] they have so much to offer.”

Cathy Brown works right next door at Good Samaritan Nursing Home as a certified nursing assistant. Brown and Hurley, along with more than 60 of their colleagues, say they recently received an alarming letter from the facilities' parent company, the Lutheran Care Network.

"There was a letter saying as of October 24 we will no longer have health insurance,” Brown said.

“This letter was a complete surprise to me,” Hurley said.

On Friday, the two rallied alongside their co-workers in hopes of preserving their benefits. The protest was organized by the 1199 SEIU United Healthcare Workers East Union. 

"They have quality health benefits which really enable them to have the peace of mind to come to work and know their family is going to be taken care of, even if they have serious illnesses, and it allows them to work here, it’s one of the incentives to work here, actually,” said Greg Speller, the union’s executive vice president.

The workers fear losing benefits will impact their own health. Brown says she will no longer be able to receive needed physical therapy on her foot.

“Without physical therapy, who knows [if] my leg is going to hold up,” Brown said.

Hoping for the chance to renegotiate with the Lutheran Care's management, their larger concern is the potential impact on the nursing home’s residents. 

“If we’re not in the best of health, how are we going to come in here and provide care for our residents,” Brown said.

“I hope they realize we cannot work short-staffed,” Hurley said. “It is just so hard on us to do that. You are trying to stay upbeat and stuff but it’s hard.”

When asked on Friday, the nursing home's administrator declined to comment on the loss of benefits.