ANA Responds to Omnibus Spending Bill

CONTACT:
Shannon McClendon, 301-628-5391
shannon.mcclendon@ana.org
Rachel Farbman, 301-628-5062
rachel.farbman@ana.org

SILVER SPRING, MD – The following statement is attributable to Pamela F. Cipriano, PhD, RN, NEA-BC, FAAN, president of the American Nurses Association (ANA), in response to the omnibus spending bill.

“Last night, Congress took important steps to further address a public health crisis that has ravaged our nation, providing an additional $3 billion to fight the opioid crisis. As providers on the frontlines of this epidemic, nurses witness first-hand the devastation of addiction and overdose. We are pleased that Congress provided additional resources to fight the crisis and also recognized the importance of having a workforce that is ready to meet the challenges of our care health care environment, providing an additional $20 million for nurse workforce development programs.

On the eve of the March for Our Lives, we saw small signs of progress for gun violence research and an improved background check system, but much work remains to keep our children and nation safe from these senseless tragedies. Acknowledging the CDC’s authority to study the problem is a step forward, but without actually allocating resources, the chilling effect on conducting research remains.

Political divisions continue to keep us from ensuring consumers have access to high quality, affordable health insurance. Congress’ inability to address health insurance market stabilization in this bill is highly disappointing. We will continue to urge Congress to act.”

For decades, ANA and nurses have called on lawmakers to come together and pass common sense policies and provide funding to address issues that affect us, our patients, and our nation. Learn more about our federal advocacy work at RNAction.org.