OGDENSBURG -- Nurses at Claxton-Hepburn Medical Center in Ogdensburg have ratified a new four-year labor contract, joining nurses at two other North Country hospitals who approved agreements last week, according to the New York State Nurses Association.

NYSNA said nurses at Claxton-Hepburn, Samaritan Medical Center in Watertown and Carthage Area Hospital voted overwhelmingly to approve the contracts. The agreements include wage increases, improved health and pension benefits, updated staffing language, and provisions addressing workplace violence and the use of artificial intelligence.

For the first time, nurses at Claxton-Hepburn and Carthage Area Hospital will enter the NYSNA Benefit Fund, which the union said will reduce health care costs for nurses and their families beginning July 1, 2026.

Jessica Thornton, a registered nurse at Claxton-Hepburn and a NYSNA member, said the contract is an important step for patient care in a region that has long faced limited health care resources.

“For too long, North Country communities and hospitals have been underresourced, and we see the impact that has on our patients every day,” Thornton said.

While the agreements cover three hospitals, negotiations continue at four other North Country facilities, including Adirondack Medical Center, UVM-Alice Hyde Medical Center, UVM-Champlain Valley Physicians Hospital and UVM-Elizabethtown Community Hospital.