A strike scheduled for this morning was canceled after members of the district 1199P health care workers' union voted last night to ratify Centre County Community Hospital's proposal.

Centre County Community Hospital administrators met with union members Monday night in the first negotiation since July 21, when the hospital imposed the terms of their last offer.

The main issue at hand was the hospital's request that union employees begin to make co-payments on their medical insurance premiums. Members of the union ratified the hospital's contract to reduce health insurance co-payments to between $12 and $98 a month, said Jon Forster, the union's administrator organizer.

But Forster said union members are not satisfied with having to make co-payments.

"The vote was by no means unanimous," he said, adding it was only a compromise.

Other issues ratified in the hospital's contract are wage increases and significant pension improvements, Forster said.

The contract will be retroactive July 1 of this year and will last two years, Forster said. Negotiations will take place before a new contract begins on June 30, 1995.

Members of the union were also able to change the hospital's position on co-payments as of Jan. 1, 1995, Forster said. The hospital's initial proposal was to make its workers pay any health care cost increase. Monday night the hospital decided to split the increase evenly with workers, Forster added.

Renegotiations stemmed from union efforts to make the hospital's board of trustees aware of its stance, Forster said.

"The hospital was at a point to where it wanted to settle," he said.

Members of the union made several attempts last week to voice their protests to the hospital as well as the community. Workers picketed outside the medical office of Dr. Donald F. Mandetta, a hospital trustee. They also protested in front of trustee chairman David Lee's home. And a candlelight vigil was held outside the hospital.

"I think we were doing a fairly effective job in getting the message out to the community," Forster said.