Your voice is needed now to support med-surg nursing priorities as Congress works on COVID-19 relief legislation! AMSN and our coalition partners at the Nursing Community Coalition have continued urging members of the House and Senate to support strong supplies of PPE and needed health care funding.

With the coronavirus spreading to parts of the U.S. previously spared, this funding is needed now – before Congress goes home for August recess. Using AMSN’s easy and convenient Legislative Action Center by clicking below, will you make your voice heard now?

Take Action! Tell Congress: More PPE, More Health in COVID-19 Relief Legislation

Nurse workforce development, research and health care quality priorities for AMSN got increases in a federal funding bill that passed a key House committee and the U.S. House of Representatives in July.

AMSN had requested Congress boost Title 8 nurse workforce development funding, the National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR), and the Agency for Health Care Research and Quality (AHRQ). The House responded, passing a bill July 31 funding Title 8 programs at $269 million for 2021, up $10 million from 2020 and $186 million over the Administration’s request. NINR got $170 million, and AHRQ $343 million, both increases.

The bill’s next step is the U.S. Senate. But with the next federal fiscal year beginning Oct. 1, it’s more likely Congress will keep Uncle Sam running on “continuing resolution” funds, the same as 2020 levels, for the short term.

Join AMSN and MSNCB in making your med-surg nursing voice heard for professional training and certification test support to be funded in the next big COVID-19 bill making its way through Congress.

“The Skills Renewal Act aims to provide financial incentives to individuals seeking new training, skills, and professional recognition,” wrote AMSN President Robin Hertel, EdS, MSN, RN, CMSRN, to Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Rep. Derek Kilmer (D-WA), sponsors of the Skills Renewal Act (S 3779 / HR 7032). “The credit would be made available to anyone who lost a job during the coronavirus pandemic…. We support amending the legislation so that its tax credit may also cover costs associated with taking professional certification examinations.”

Contact Congress Now: Support the Skills Renewal Act

Nurses landed two key national posts with support from AMSN, consistent with our organization’s principles for advancing nursing leadership.  The National Institutes of Nursing Research (NINR), part of the National Institutes of Health, named Shannon Zenk, PhD, MPH, RN, FAAN, as its director. AMSN had urged the federal government to ensure AMSN was led by a nurse.

Also, the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) named Betty Rambur, PhD, RN, to this advisory body that advises Congress about Medicare payment and policy. AMSN and the Nursing Community Coalition had supported her nomination.

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