WASHINGTON, D.C. – Oregon’s U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley today led a group of ten of his colleagues in urging Senate leadership to include critical support for America’s nursing workforce in upcoming coronavirus relief legislation.
Specifically, the senators requested in their letter to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Minority Leader Chuck Schumer that at least $15 billion in supplemental funding be allotted for Title VIII Nursing Workforce Development programs—including at least $5 billion specifically for the Nurse Corps Loan Repayment and Scholarship programs.
“For over five decades, the Title VIII programs have been helping to educate and retain our America’s nursing workforce. These programs bolster nursing education at all levels, from entry-level preparation through graduate study, and support academic institutions and the nurse faculty who prepare today’s nursing students to be tomorrow’s expert clinicians,” the senators wrote. “Now, more than ever, it is imperative to invest in our nursing workforce. An investment in our nursing workforce today is a commitment to America’s health now and into the future.”
Title VIII programs are designed to maintain a strong nursing workforce that meets current demands and is prepared to address future public health needs, and include the Advanced Nursing Education program; Nursing Workforce Diversity program; Nurse Education, Practice, Quality, and Retention program; Nurse Faculty Loan program; and Nurse Corps Loan Repayment and Scholarship programs.
Senator Merkley, who is the husband of a nurse and the co-chair of the Senate Nursing Caucus, has long championed Title VIII programs in the Senate, and teamed up with Senator Richard Burr (R-NC) to introduce the Title VIII Nursing Workforce Reauthorization Act of 2019, which unanimously passed out of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee in October of last year and became law after it was included in the recently passed CARES Act.
Senator Merkley was joined in sending today’s letter by U.S. Senators Richard Durbin (D-IL), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Tim Kaine (D-VA), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Kamala Harris (D-CA), and Amy Klobuchar (D-MN).
The full text of the letter is available here and follows below.
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Thank you for your bipartisan work in passing H.R. 748, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. We are especially grateful that the bill included the reauthorization of the Title VIII Nursing Workforce Development Programs (S.1399).
For over five decades, the Title VIII programs have been helping to educate and retain our America’s nursing workforce. These programs bolster nursing education at all levels, from entry-level preparation through graduate study, and support academic institutions and the nurse faculty who prepare today’s nursing students to be tomorrow’s expert clinicians. Now, more than ever, it is imperative to invest in our nursing workforce. An investment in our nursing workforce today is a commitment to America’s health now and into the future.
As you begin work on the next COVID-19 relief bill, we strongly urge you to include the following priorities in further legislative packages to address this public health crisis:
Invest in Title VIII Nursing Workforce Development Programs. Title VIII programs connect patients with nursing care across a variety of settings, including community health centers, hospitals, and schools of nursing. We therefore request not less than $15 billion in supplemental funding to be allocated for all Title VIII Nursing Workforce Development programs, including at least $5 billion specifically for the Nurse Corps Loan Repayment and Scholarship programs, which shall remain available until expended. Title VIII programs include Advanced Nursing Education program; Nursing Workforce Diversity program; Nurse Education, Practice, Quality, and Retention program; Nurse Faculty Loan program; and Nurse Corps Loan Repayment and Scholarship programs. This supplemental funding will ensure the nursing workforce remains strong and able to meet the current demands brought by this pandemic, as well as future nursing education and workforce demands as well.
Thank you for your consideration of this request, and we look forward to working with you as we consider legislation to respond to the current public health crisis.
Sincerely,
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