National Nursing Shortage Reform and Patient Advocacy Act
Latest action · Mar 25, 2015 Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
Progress
Where this bill reached, and when. A stage with no date was not reached; one that failed a vote and later carried shows the date it carried.
- IntroducedMar 25, 2015
- Passed SenateNot reached
- Passed HouseNot reached
- To the PresidentNot reached
- Became lawNot reached
Summary
National Nursing Shortage Reform and Patient Advocacy Act
Amends the Public Health Service Act to require hospitals to implement and submit to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) a staffing plan that complies with specified minimum nurse-to-patient ratios by unit. Requires HHS to develop a transparent method for establishing nurse staffing requirements above minimum ratios.
Directs HHS to adjust Medicare payments to hospitals to cover additional costs incurred in providing services to Medicare beneficiaries that are attributable to compliance with such ratios.
Gives nurses the right to act as the patient's advocate by initiating action to improve health care and by giving the patient an opportunity to make informed health care decisions. Allows a nurse to object to, or refuse to participate in, any assignment if it would violate minimum ratios or if the nurse is not prepared by education or experience to fulfill the assignment without compromising the safety of a patient or jeopardizing the nurse's license. Prohibits a hospital from: (1) taking specified actions against a nurse based on the nurse's refusal to accept an assignment for such a reason; or (2) discriminating against any individual for good faith complaints relating to the care, services, or conditions of the hospital or of any related facilities.
Adds stipends to the nurse workforce loan repayment and scholarship program. Expands the nurse retention grant program to authorize programs to implement nurse preceptorship and mentorship projects.
Cosponsors 4
Members who signed on, in the order they did. Signatures ran from Mar 25, 2015 to Oct 22, 2015; 1 is an original cosponsor, there from the day it was introduced.
| Seat | Cosponsor | Signed on | |
|---|---|---|---|
| D-OH | Sherrod Brown | Original | Mar 25, 2015 |
| I-VT | Bernard Sanders | Jul 23, 2015 | |
| D-MA | Edward J. Markey | Sep 29, 2015 | |
| D-WI | Tammy Baldwin | Oct 22, 2015 |
Committees 1
Where it was sent and what each committee and subcommittee did with it, in order.
| Chamber | Committee | What it did |
|---|---|---|
| Senate | Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee | Referred Mar 25, 2015 |
Actions 2
Everything that happened, newest first.
- Mar 25, 2015Introduced in Senate
- Mar 25, 2015Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
Related bills 1
Companion bills and other measures the record links to this one.
| Bill | Title | Relationship | Latest action |
|---|---|---|---|
| HR 1602 | Nurse Staffing Standards for Patient Safety and Quality Care Act of 2015 | Related bill | Apr 7, 2015 |
Titles 2
Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.
- Official Title as Introduced
- A bill to amend the Public Health Service Act to establish direct care registered nurse-to-patient staffing ratio requirements in hospitals, and for other purposes.
- Short Titles as Introduced
- National Nursing Shortage Reform and Patient Advocacy Act
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Health.
- Administrative law and regulatory procedures
- Civil actions and liability
- Department of Health and Human Services
- Employment discrimination and employee rights
- Government information and archives
- Government studies and investigations
- Health
- Health care quality
- Health facilities and institutions
- Health personnel
- Health programs administration and funding
- Health technology, devices, supplies
- Hospital care
- Medicaid
- Medical education
- Medicare
- Nursing
- Student aid and college costs
- Veterans' medical care
Text 1
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- Mar 25, 2015Introduced in Senate
Everything here is as published by Congress: the summary is the Congressional Research Service's, the action wording is the clerks', and the subjects are the Library of Congress's. How far it got is read from the actions themselves, taking the most recent one of each kind, so a bill that failed a vote and later passed is shown as having passed. Records come from this bill on Congress.gov and govinfo.gov; cost estimates are the Congressional Budget Office's, and the hearings are the printed hearings GovInfo publishes, which can appear months after the hearing.
