Nurses union lobbies Congress on health care bills during National Nurses Week

Members of National Nurses United are lobbying lawmakers on multiple pieces of legislation concerning nurses and patients as part of National Nurses Week.

The union, which represents more than 170,000 registered nurses, aims to gain support for several bills by virtually meeting with scores of congressional members to promote health care priorities.

Over days of lobbying, hundreds of these nurses are expected to advocate for bills such as the Medicare for All Act proposed by Reps. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) and Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.), which would establish a national Medicare for All program. 

The nurses union also will request the White House to finish reviewing and adopt an Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Emergency Temporary Standard designed to protect nurses during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

National Nurses United called on the White House to put the standard into effect by May 12, which is the final day of National Nurses Week and International Nurses Day. 

National Nurses Week officially began on Thursday and continues next week.

Other legislation the registered nurses are pushing for include a bill that would create an OSHA standard for workplace violence protection for health care and social workers and another that develops required nurse-to-patient ratios to prevent understaffing. 

The nurses will also promote the Protecting the Right to Organize Act, the Tax on Wall Street Speculation Act and the VA Employee Fairness Act. 

“These registered nurses are patient advocates, at the bedside, in their communities and in the halls of Congress,” National Nurses United President Jean Ross said in a statement. “Congress needs to hear from the nurses who have been on the front lines of this pandemic and who know best the measures that need to be taken to ensure patient and frontline health care worker safety.”