1.This Act may be cited as the
National Nurse Act of 2010
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2.Establishing the
office of the national nurseTitle XVII of the Public Health Service Act
(42 U.S.C. 300u et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:
1711.Office of the
national nurse
(a)
(1)There is established within the Public Health Service an
office to be known as the Office of the National Nurse, which shall be headed
by a registered nurse, appointed by the Secretary, serving in a full-time
position to be known as the National Nurse.
(2)Except
for the initial appointment of the National Nurse under paragraph (3), the
Secretary shall appoint the National Nurse in accordance with Commissioned
Corps Instruction CC23.4.6 (relating to Chief Professional Officer
Nominations), as in effect on February 13, 2008.
(3)Not later than 30
days after the date of enactment of this section, the Secretary shall appoint
the individual serving as the Chief Nurse Officer of the Public Health Service
as of the date of the enactment of this section as the first National Nurse.
(b)The National Nurse shall have the same rank and grade as
the Deputy Surgeon General of the Public Health Service.
(c)The
National Nurse shall carry out the following:
(1)Provide leadership
and coordination of Public Health Service nursing professional affairs for the
Office of the Surgeon General and other agencies of the Public Health Service,
including providing representation for the Government of the United States at
the Global Forum for Government Chief Nursing and Midwifery Officers and
serving as a member of the Federal Nursing Service Council.
(2)Represent the Surgeon General and the
agencies of Public Health Service in communications with groups and societies
concerned with nursing issues at the local, State, national, and international
levels.
(3)Provide guidance
and advice to the Surgeon General and the Nurse Professional Advisory Committee
on matters such as standards, recruitment, retention, readiness, and career
development of nurses employed by and contracted with agencies of the Public
Health Service.
(4)Conduct media
campaigns and make personal appearances for purposes of paragraphs (5) through
(7).
(5)Provide guidance
and leadership for activities to promote the public health, including
encouraging nurses and other health professionals to be volunteers and
developing projects that educate the public about and engage the public in
prevention practices to achieve better health.
(6)Provide guidance and leadership to
encourage nurses to become nurse educators.
(7)Provide guidance and leadership for
activities that will increase public safety and emergency preparedness.
(d)
(1)Each fiscal year, the
National Nurse shall identify, in consultation with the Surgeon General, heads
of the agencies of the Public Health Service, States, and organizations that
represent health professionals, annual health priorities.
(2)Carrying out
annual health prioritiesThe
National Nurse, in addressing the annual health priorities, shall encourage
volunteerism of nurses and other individuals, and strengthen the relationship
between Government agencies and health-related national organizations.
(3)
(A)In carrying out this
subsection, the National Nurse shall encourage community-based, nonprofit
organizations to seek grants for the purpose of education and interventions to
address the annual health priorities.
(B)In encouraging community-based, nonprofit
organizations under subparagraph (A), the National Nurse shall—
(i)provide guidance and coordination on
recommended activities to such organizations;
(ii)encourage
practicing nurses and other health professionals, including retired health
professionals and students enrolled in health professional programs, to
participate in health promotion activities and replicate successful health
promotion activities;
(iii)monitor
activities being conducted through the collection and evaluation of data to
determine if the annual health priorities are being addressed; and
(iv)acknowledge
successful programs and encourage their replication.
(C)The National Nurse shall ensure that media campaigns
conducted under subsection (c)(4) include media campaigns regarding the annual
health priorities.
(D)The National Nurse shall, directly or
through awards of grants or contracts, evaluate the activities encouraged by
the National Nurse and conducted by community-based, nonprofit organizations
under subparagraph (A) to determine the extent to which such activities have
succeeded in carrying out the purpose described in such subparagraph.
(E)Dissemination of
informationThe National
Nurse shall disseminate information to governmental agencies, schools, and
community-based, nonprofit organizations interested in health promotion and
improving public health through community action.
(e)Authorization of
AppropriationsFor the purpose of carrying out this section,
there are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary for each
of the fiscal years 2010 through
2014.
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