[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 65 (Friday, May 10, 1996)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E770-E771]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          NATIONAL NURSES WEEK

                                 ______


                         HON. ROBERT E. ANDREWS

                             of new jersey

                    in the house of representatives

                          Friday, May 10, 1996

  Mr. ANDREWS. Mr. Speaker, this week has been designated National 
Nurses Week. As Congress faces several important items affecting health 
delivery in the United States, it is a good time to reflect on the 
importance of nurses to our health care system.

[[Page E771]]

  The issues affecting the nursing profession continue to have a 
profound impact on the quality of health care our constituents receive. 
Many in other professions seek to exclude nurses from performing duties 
for which they are qualified. As licensed practitioners, nurses are 
just as capable as other professionals of performing high quality 
services--often at much lower cost. We must find ways to use their 
talents.
  The nursing profession as a whole is being besieged by reductions in 
public and private budgets, as well as by changes in hospital staffing 
policies. We must support continued funding for nursing education. We 
must support measures to allow nurses to practice in their own 
specialties rather than floating between hospital wards. Finally, we 
must oppose any move by health insurers to allow unlicensed 
practitioners to assume the nurses' role.
  If we want to maintain the high quality of health care in the United 
States, we must examine every part of the caregiving network for 
savings and efficiency. I believe our investment in the education and 
utilization of nurses will continue to prove sound.

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