Editor's Note
Stand
and be counted
Let
Texas legislators know you support Nurse Shortage Reduction
Act
Beth Ulrich, Ed.D.,
RN, South Central Editor
March
5, 2001
The
77th Texas Legislative session has begun. While this does
not have a direct effect on those of you in Arkansas, Louisiana
and Oklahoma, the Nurse Shortage Reduction Act of 2001 may
have at least an indirect effect. For Texas, this is a critical
time, as its Legislature only meets for about five months
once every two years.
As of
Feb. 26, 2,142 bills have been filed in the House and 916
in the Senate. While many may be important to you, none
probably are more important than companion bills SB 572
and HB 1361, dubbed the Nurse Shortage Reduction Act of
2001. We owe special thanks to Sen. Mike Moncrief, D-Fort
Worth, and Rep. Patricia Gray, D-Galveston, and their co-authors
for sponsoring these bills.
The
Nurse Shortage Reduction Act of 2001 would:
SB 572
has been referred to the Senate’s Health and Human Services
Committee, chaired by Sen. Moncrief and vice-chaired by
Sen. John Carona, R-Dallas. The committee had a public hearing
on the bill Feb. 22. Margaret Jordan, executive vice president
of corporate affairs for Texas Health Resources, and Alexia
Green, dean of Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center
School of Nursing and president of the Texas Nurses Association,
testified before the committee.
The
bill was left pending because it involves fiscal allocations.
HB 1361
has been referred to the House’s Higher Education Committee,
chaired by Rep. Irma Rangel, D-Austin, and vice-chaired
by Rep. Fred Brown, R-Bryan.
Now
come the important steps and the places where you as voters
and nurses can make a difference.
First,
the bills have to be voted out of the committee. We need
the support of the committee members for that to happen.
Legislators listen first and foremost to people in their
districts.
If you,
your family or friends live in the districts of any of the
Senate or House committee members who are acting on these
bills, please get in touch with the legislators and/or their
staff members by telephone, mail or e-mail and help educate
them on the nursing shortage, reinforce how powerful this
legislation can be and encourage them to support it.
These
bills are not without cost. Sen. Moncrief estimates that
$5 million must be allocated for the next biennium to begin
to increase enrollment in nursing schools. Many other groups
will be competing for money and we must make our voices
heard.
The
bills must be voted out of the Senate and House committees
in order to proceed to the next step. This is the time for
you to contribute not only to the future of nursing but
also to the care of Texans.
It only
takes a few minutes to contact your legislators to help
move these bills forward. An investment of a small amount
of time now will increase the likelihood that when you or
your family needs a nurse in the future, one will be available.
Click
here for more Texas legislator and bill information.
