2005 LEGISLATIVE PLATFORM
The Washington State Nurses Association provides leadership for the nursing profession
and promotes quality health care for consumers through education, advocacy, and
influencing health care policy in the State of Washington.
NURSING PRACTICE
- Support the implementation of Washington Nursing Leadership Council's Washington
State Strategic Plan for Nursing to address the nursing shortage.
- Support nursing's unique role in the delivery of comprehensive, quality and cost-effective
care.
- Support the completion of an approved RN education program and the principle of
individual licensure as mandatory for the practice of registered nursing.
- Encourage specialty certification and advanced practice of nursing.
- Support nursing education funding for:
- Nursing programs within institutions of higher education and for nursing faculty
salaries.
- Nursing education, including specialty certification and advance practice preparation.
- Support funding for:
- Grants and loans to encourage recruitment and retention in nursing including increasing
the diversity of the nursing workforce.
- Nursing research to maximize nursing's contribution to health.
- Data collection and analysis on the nursing workforce and current and future of
health care needs.
- Protect the public by promoting the role and practice of registered nurses.
ACCESS TO QUALITY CARE
- Support full access to health care for all.
- Support health promotion and disease prevention as major focus of health care system.
- Support comprehensive services delivered in familiar, convenient sites such as schools,
workplaces and homes, as well as traditional health care settings.
- Ensure access to nursing services that emphasize the role of registered nurses as
qualified providers of health care in all practice settings.
- Enhance patient safety through a systems approach for the prevention of medical
errors and injuries.
- Support and promote advanced registered nurse practitioners as primary care providers.
FINANCING HEALTH & SOCIAL SERVICES
- Support an equitable tax base which will provide adequate funding for needed social
and health services and state agency oversight.
- Ensure funding for state health plans, public health, and public health nursing
services.
- Support cost containment incentives in the health care delivery system that do not
compromise quality of care and that:
- apply to all providers, payors and vendors.
- are based on continued review of the appropriateness of health care services, and
- serve to eliminate significant waste and inefficiency.
.
- Protect dedicated health funding and ensure it is used solely for health services.
HUMAN RIGHTS
- Support the basic right of all people for equity under the law regardless of race,
creed, color, gender, age, disability, lifestyle, religion, health status, nationality,
or sexual orientation.
- Promote a health care system that recognizes, values and accommodates differences
among people.
- Increase the awareness of nurses, other healthcare providers and the general public
about the problems of violence, sexual assault and harassment.
ECONOMIC and GENERAL WELFARE
- Promote RN staffing standards to ensure quality patient care and safety for health
care providers.
- Endorse and actively support the rights of all employees to participate in the collective
bargaining process.
- Support measures, including comparable worth, which promote the economic welfare
of all nurses.
- Promote and seek enactment of legislation that protects the economic and employment
rights of nurses, including their right to advocate for patients.
- Support measures that create a work environment where nurses are respected, valued,
and included in the decision making process.
OCCUPATIONAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH
- Support research for the prevention and treatment of occupational and environmental
health problems.
- Support efforts to assure adequate prevention, preparedness, and response to natural,
biological and chemical disasters, and acts of terrorism.
- Support legislation and regulation that assures workplace safety and promotes environmental
health
- Support a precautionary approach towards occupational and environmental health.
Proposed by Legislative and Health Policy Council, September 2004
Approved by WSNA Board of Directors, November 19, 2004
2005 LEGISLATIVE & REGULATORY AGENDA
During the state legislative session, there will be hundreds of health care related
bills introduced. WSNA will examine legislation that pertains to nursing and health
care and revise the agenda as needed. Please check our web site www.wsna.org for updated legislative information throughout the session.
Active Primary Support - Legislation that WSNA is initiating, researching, drafting,
and working actively on during the legislative session.
- Expansion and reorganization of Nursing Commission with designated slots.
- Patient Safety Act - safe RN staffing standards
- Funding for nursing workforce data collection and analysis and the Center for Nursing
- Funding for RN faculty salaries
- Funding for nursing enrollments
- Funding for scholarships and loan repayments
- Funding for public health and public health nursing
- Completion of mandatory overtime prohibition to include all RNs.
Active Support - Issues not initiated by but are strongly supported by WSNA. These
are issues that WSNA is working on in collaboration with other associations and
coalitions.
- Ergonomic standards
- Protect services and increase funding for state health plans including CHIP and
BHP
- Legislative and regulatory issues of WSNA affiliates and other specialty nursing
organizations
- Prevention of workplace violence
- Mental health parity
- Access to affordable prescription drugs
- Elimination of persistent environmental toxics
- Ban indoor smoking
Active Monitor - Issues that WSNA has not taken a formal position on but is monitoring
very closely. WSNA will decide whether to support or oppose depending on the exact
language of the legislation.
- Access to affordable liability insurance
- Tort Reform
- Regulatory Reform
- Criminal background checks
- Individual &small group insurance market reform
- Changes to the Uniform Disciplinary Act
- Medical/medication errors
- Budget
- Medicaid changes/reforms
- Long term care issues
- Nurse Practice Act & educational standards
- Medication Assistants
- Scope of Practice Issues
Review - Issues that have been identified as having a potential impact on nursing
and quality health care. WSNA is not likely to work actively on these issues but
will monitor them.
- Age of consent for mental health services
- Reimbursement for any category of provider
- End of life issues/assisted suicide
- Access to family planning services
- Nurse delegation
Regulatory Monitoring - Issues that pertain to the various state regulatory agencies
such as the Department of Health and Labor & Industries. We monitor and provide
input on these issues as rulemaking and agency oversight occurs.
- Prescription drugs
- Eliminating mercury use in health care settings
- Nursing assistant education
- 3rd party reimbursement parity for ARNPs
- Nurse delegation
- Latex allergy
- Long term care
- Mandatory overtime
- State employees right to bargain for wages
- Medicaid changes/reforms
- Mandated coverage of contraceptives
- Indoor air quality
- DOH/Nursing Commission administrative issues
- Patient and provider confidentiality issues/HIPAA regulation
- Blood borne pathogens
- Nurse technicians
- Tobacco settlement implementation
Proposed by the Legislative and Health Policy Council, September
2004
Approved by WSNA Board of Directors, November 19, 2004
