MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- More than 12,000 Minneapolis-area nurses are planning to hit picket lines today in a dispute over staffing levels and pension benefits.

The nurses have authorized a one-day strike on 14 hospitals in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area. The hospitals say they've hired enough well-qualified replacement nurses to operate safely during the strike.

Health care costs have been skyrocketing and hospitals are trying to trim their budgets. Nurse pay and benefits are among their largest expenses.

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