April 13, 2001
Nursing Shortage Bills Introduced
Rep. Lois Capps (D-Calif.), a registered nurse, April 4 introduced the Nurse Reinvestment Act (H.R. 1436), which would provide $116 million annually for the next 2 years to alleviate the growing nursing shortage and also would expand Medicare and Medicaid payments for some nursing education programs. Sens. John Kerry (D-Mass.) and Jim Jeffords (R-Vt.) April 5 introduced companion legislation (S. 706). These bills were outlined at a Feb. 14 forum on nursing shortages [see Washington Highlights, Feb. 16].
Both bills would direct $20 million per year to state and local awareness campaigns that promote the advantages and rewards of a nursing career. Such efforts would include public service announcements, outreach programs targeted at elementary and secondary school guidance counselors, and interactive web sites -- all with a special focus on attracting individuals from disadvantaged communities and backgrounds. The money also would support programs that provide nursing students with remedial education in math, science, English, and medical terminology, as well as childcare and transportation related to their training.
The Capps legislation also would earmark $46 million per year for developing "education pipelines" that direct students toward careers in nursing and nurse education. A portion of this money would be devoted to scholarship/loan repayment programs for doctoral students who join nursing school faculties upon graduation. Other portions would fund grants and scholarships for nursing education at any level, help nursing schools develop gerontology curricula, fund training partnerships between nursing schools and health care providers, allow the purchase of distance-learning technology, and promote professional mentoring. The Kerry legislation would devote $20 million to educational grants and does not provide any financial incentives for doctoral students to join nursing school faculties.
H.R. 1436 includes $50 million each year for a National Nursing Service Corps Scholarship program (NNSC), framed after the National Health Service Corps, that would pay a student's tuition bill and provide a monthly stipend if the student committed to at least 2 years of service in an area/facility with a nursing shortage. The Senate proposal would authorize $65 million for the NNSC.
Both bills also propose expansion through FY 2006 of Medicare nursing training education payments to qualified non-hospital providers, as well as a temporary increase in the federal matching rate for Medicaid Nurse Aid and Competency Evaluation Programs.
Sens. Tim Hutchinson (R-Ark.) and Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.) April 5 introduced separate legislation to combat the nursing shortage: the Nursing Employment and Education Development (NEED) Act (S. 721). This bill would expand the nursing loan repayment program to include a scholarship component and would expand the types of eligible facilities that recipients may serve in to include nursing homes, home health agencies, and public health departments. It contains provisions similar to the other bills for improving the recruitment of nurses, strengthening the workforce, and developing the nurse faculty.
The final provision in S. 721 would establish a one-year commission to study the nursing shortage and the effectiveness or recruitment and retention initiatives, and would require a report within 18 months of enactment.
Information: Christiane Mitchell, or Erica Froyd, AAMC Office of Governmental Relations, 202-828-0525.
