Mikulski Works to Combat America's Nursing Shortage

Mikulski Works to Combat America's Nursing Shortage

Senator Barbara A. Mikulski (D-Md.) has joined Senator Susan Collins (R-Maine) in urging Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Senator Robert C. Byrd (D-W.Va.) and Ranking Member Senator Thad Cochran (R-Miss.) to provide crucial funding for nursing education and workforce development programs. At a minimum, the Senators urged that the program receive the Committee-passed level of $150 million as they work on the fiscal year 2007 Continuing Resolution.

"Too often, America's nurses are overworked, underpaid and undervalued. America is facing a nursing shortage, and it is only getting worse," said Senator Mikulski. "I will keep fighting to make nursing a priority in the federal checkbook. We need to get closer to ending this crucial shortage."

Senator Mikulski has been a consistent advocate for nursing education throughout her 30 years in Congress, and has worked to increase scholarships and access to programs to address the nation's growing nursing shortage. In 2002, she introduced the Nurse Reinvestment Act, which offered financial assistance for nursing education and training in order to encourage more men and women to enter the field and pursue advanced degrees. In 2004, she also helped secure funding for several Maryland nursing programs that help ease the nursing shortage.

The text of the letter is below:

Dear Chairman Byrd and Ranking Member Cochran:

We applaud your efforts to pass a year-long continuing resolution to complete the FY 2007 appropriations bills in a timely and bipartisan way. During your work to complete the FY 2007 Labor, Health and Human Services, Education appropriations bill, we ask that you retain the Senate funding level of $150 million for Nursing Workforce Development (Title VIII, Public Health Service Act) programs at the Committee-passed level of $150 million. Moreover, we urge you to allocate additional funds to these important Title VIII programs.

The seven authorities under Title VIII provide the largest source of federal funding that focuses on the nursing shortage. They address nursing recruitment, education, and retention programs in schools of nursing as well as assist individual students with tuition assistance. In April 2006, fifty-two of our Senate colleagues supported us in requesting $175 million for these critical programs in FY2007.

As you are aware, our health care system has been crippled by a nursing shortage that is only projected to worsen in coming years. In 2005, the Bureau of Labor Statistics estimated that health care facilities will need to fill more than 1.2 million RN job openings by 2014 to accommodate growing patient needs, the aging baby boomers, and to replace retiring nurses. We firmly believe that the Nursing Workforce Development programs provide a long-term solution that addresses the nursing workforce.

The Title VIII programs represent an important investment for patients. We encourage you to join us in this bi-artisan effort to ensure that these programs have the resources required to educate, recruit, and retain enough registered nurses. We respectfully request the retention of the Committee passed level of $150 million, and urge your consideration of providing additional appropriations in the final year-long continuing resolution for these important programs.

Your consideration of this request is greatly appreciated.

http://mikulski.senate.gov/record.cfm?id=267896