Relief in Sight for the Overworked Nurse? : Staffing bill introduced in Senate & Nurses Need to Support It!

Thank you for contacting me to express your support for improving nurse staffing standards. Your opinion is very important to me, and I value the opportunity to respond to you on this critical issue. I strongly believe that nurses are the cornerstone of the nation's health care system offering comprehensive treatment and often invaluable comfort to patients in difficult times.

The Registered Nurse Safe Staffing Act (H.R. 1821) was introduced in the House of Representatives on April 30, 2013. This legislation would require hospitals participating in Medicare to have an appropriate number of nurses providing direct patient care in each unit to ensure that patients receive safe and quality care. This legislation was referred to the Energy and Commerce Committee and the Ways and Means Committee. Although I am not a member of the House of Representatives, please rest assured I will keep your support in mind should similar legislation come before the Senate. To keep track of this bill, I encourage you to visit the Committees' websites (http://energycommerce.house.gov/, http://waysandmeans.house.gov/) as well as the Library of Congress' THOMAS website (http://thomas.loc.gov).

Again, thank you for sharing your thoughts with me. I appreciate your support. Please do not hesitate to contact me if I may be of more assistance. I invite you to visit my website (http://menendez.senate.gov) to learn more about how I am standing up for New Jersey families in the United States Senate.