Iowa Hospital Association lends support to Latham's nursing crisis solution
Washington,
Oct 15 -
Iowa Congressman Tom Latham was notified late Tuesday that his solution to the nursing crisis has earned another notable Iowa supporter: the Iowa Hospital Association. Congressman Latham introduced the Nurses Higher Education and Loan Repayment Act of 2008 to address the severe nursing crisis in Iowa and around the country. The legislation targets the nursing shortage by addressing the fact that nursing schools around the country currently do not have enough qualified teachers to graduate enough new nurses to meet today's, and tomorrow's, ever increasing demand for nursing services. The lack of qualified nurse educators has been identified as the root of the crisis.
Laura Malone, the Iowa Hospital Association’s director of nursing and clinical services, said in a letter to Congressman Latham, “Iowa needs an aggressive strategy that recruits and prepares nurses at the master’s and doctorate levels to become the future nurse educators and leaders. Your legislation helps to address the faculty shortage by providing a loan repayment program for current students enrolled in graduate nursing programs and advanced degree nurses who have recently graduated. Thank you for your leadership on behalf of America’s nurses and the thousands of individuals who desire to pursue an education leading to a career as a registered professional nurse. We are happy to assist you and your staff to make this needed bill become a legislative reality.”
"Nurses are the backbone of the health care industry," said Congressman Latham. "Demand for nurses has been outpacing the number of nurses available, and this trend will continue unless we take action now. The Nurses' Higher Education and Loan Repayment Act is the first step in making sure Iowans have consistent high-quality health care services available and that those services continue into the future. I am proud to have introduced legislation that the Iowa Hospital Association has found worthy of supporting."
Specifically, the Nurses Higher Education and Loan Repayment Act establishes a federally-funded student loan repayment program for nurses with outstanding debt who pursue a career in nurse education. To qualify, nurses must enter an agreement with the federal government to teach at an accredited school of nursing on a full time basis for a total of at least four years within a six-year consecutive period. Nurses are required to obtain employment as a nurse educator within nine months of completing an advanced nursing degree, or within nine months of entering an agreement to teach. Up to a total of $40,000 in loan repayment is provided for nurses obtaining a master’s degree, which is the basic requirement to become a nurse educator. Up to $80,000 is provided for nurses obtaining a doctorate nursing degree. This is designed to cover, or nearly cover, the cost of obtaining advanced degrees from public or private institutions.
In addition to the Iowa Hospital Association and bi-partisan support the legislation has found in the House of Representatives, The Nurses Higher Education and Loan Repayment Act has been endorsed by 44 nursing organizations in the United States, including the American Nurses Association and the American Association of Colleges of Nursing, along with the American Association of Community Colleges and the Service Employees International Union.
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