Stansbury introduces bill to revitalize nursing workforce

U.S. Rep.Melanie Stansbury introduced the Public Health Nursing Act in the House this week.

This legislation, which was introduced in the Senate by Sen. Edward Markey (D-MA), aims to address the public health crisis through revitalizing and sustaining a robust public health nursing workforce in the United States. The legislation would be a monumental step in addressing the health care staffing shortage, authorizing $5 billion annually over the course of 10 years to create a grant program through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for state, local and tribal public health departments to recruit, hire, train, pay and retain licensed registered nurses.

“Nurses are chronically overworked, underpaid and understaffed,” Stansbury said. “It’s way past time we overhaul our health care system to prioritize the needs of our nurses. The Public Health Nursing Act is a crucial step towards creating a healthy, fruitful future for both our communities as well as our public health workers. This legislation will help us rebuild and sustain a robust public health nursing workforce. By addressing critical aspects such as collective bargaining rights and safeguards against displacing existing investments in public health nursing, in addition to funding, this bill provides a robust response to the nursing shortage we are facing today.”

The legislation is cosponsored by Reps. Gwen Moore, Bonnie Watson Coleman, Eleanor Holmes Norton, Jesús “Chuy” García, Delia Ramirez, Robert Garcia, Yadira Caraveo, Jill Tokuda, Maxwell Alejandro Frost, Maxine Waters, Ilhan Omar, Steve Cohen, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Judy Chu, Barbara Lee, Pramila Jayapal, Ayanna Pressley, and Cori Bush.

The legislation is supported by the National Nurses United; American Federation of Teachers; American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees; Service Employees International Union; American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations.

“Our country’s public health care infrastructure keeps families and communities safe and healthy, both in times of crisis, and in their daily lives,” said AFT President Randi Weingarten. “Health care workers, overall, were already on the brink prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, and now, they’re struggling even more, facing the ongoing corporatization of hospitals that prioritize profits over people, and extremist politicians hellbent on slashing benefits and turning back the clock to a time when health care was a privilege reserved only for the wealthy few. The Public Health Nursing Act aims to begin to right these wrongs by investing in our public health care infrastructure to make sure it’s well-equipped to care for the sick, aging and injured, offering specific grants to agencies that prioritize their health care workforce and offer them a voice on the job through a union. As the fastest-growing health care union in the country, the AFT sees first-hand how important that voice in the workplace is for nurses and health professionals, and how much it impacts patient care.”