93 House Members Sign Letter Urging Increased Nursing Workforce Funding
In early March, Reps. Lois Capps, RN (D-CA) and Frank LoBiondo (R-NJ) circulated a letter in the U.S. House of Representatives supporting $267.3 million in FY 2011 appropriations for the Title VIII Nursing Workforce Development Programs. A bipartisan group of 93 members of the House of Representatives signed the final Capps/LoBiondo letter, which was delivered to the House Appropriations Committee on March 19.
We wouldn’t have been able to reach this number without your calls and e-mails to your Representative! Thanks to all for your outreach! It made the difference! ANA needs your help NOW to build support for a similar letter supporting nursing workforce funding in the Senate.
Background on Title VIII Nursing Workforce Development Programs
The Title VIII Nursing Workforce Development programs administered by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) are the primary source of Federal funding for nursing education. The major grant programs areas are:
Advanced Education Nursing—Provides grants to nursing schools, academic health centers, and other entities to enhance education and practice for nurses in master’s and post-master’s programs. These programs prepare nurse practitioners, clinical nurse specialists, nurse midwives, nurse anesthetists, nurse educators, nurse administrators, and public health nurses.
Workforce Diversity Grants—Provides grants to increase opportunities for individuals who are from disadvantaged backgrounds, including students from economically disadvantaged families as well as racial and ethnic minorities underrepresented in the nursing profession.
Nurse Education, Practice, and Retention Grants—Supports schools and nurses at the associate and baccalaureate degree level. Grants are provided to schools of nursing, academic health centers, nursing centers, state and local governments and other public or private nonprofit entities. Some grants (such as grants promoting the Magnet Hospital best practices for nursing administration) are also available to health care facilities.
National Nurse Service Corps—The Nurse Education Loan Repayment Program repays 60 to 85 percent of nursing student loans in return for at least two years of practice in a facility designated to have a critical shortage of nurses. The Nursing Scholarship Program supports students enrolled in nursing school. Upon graduation, scholarship recipients are required to work full-time for at least two years in a facility designated to have a critical shortage of nurses.
Nurse Faculty Loan Program—Establishes loan programs within schools of nursing to support students pursuing master’s and doctoral degrees. Upon graduation, loan recipients are required to teach at a school of nursing in exchange for cancellation of up to 85 percent of their educational loans, plus interest, over four years.
Comprehensive Geriatric Education Grants—Provides grants to train nurses who provide direct care for the elderly, to support geriatric nursing curriculum, to train faculty in geriatrics, and to provide continuing education to nurses who provide geriatric care.
Background on Dear Colleague Letters
These House and Senate letters, are commonly referred to as “Dear Colleague” letters because they are sent from one Member of Congress to another, and are used to demonstrate support for federal programs. The more Representatives and Senators who sign these letters, the more likely the programs are to receive funding increases.
Rachel Conant
Tags: Capps/LoBiondo, HRSA, March 2010, Nursing Workforce Development Programs, Title VIII
