[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 174 (Tuesday, November 25, 2003)]
[Senate]
[Page S15959]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                          CADET NURSING CORPS

  Mr. REID. Mr. President, some of us are barely old enough to recall 
the end of World War II. And we remember that it was an effort that 
involved the entire Nation in a monumental struggle against the evil of 
fascism.
  During World War II the United States sent more than 250,000 nurses 
to the front lines to care for our wounded Allied troops.
  By 1942, the country was experiencing a shortage of nurses for 
domestic medical needs. In fact, the shortage was so severe that many 
clinics were forced to close.
  To alleviate our domestic medical crisis, Congresswoman Frances Payne 
Bolton introduced legislation creating the United States Cadet Nurse 
Corps in 1943. Over the next 5 years, the Corps recruited about 125,000 
young women to assume the duties of nurses who had been dispatched to 
the front lines. Throughout World War II, cadet nurses accounted for 80 
percent of the nursing staff in our domestic medical facilities.
  Cadet nurses completed rigorous training under the jurisdiction of 
the Public Health service. They also pledged to serve at any time 
during the war, at any hospital or clinic where they might be needed. 
They were often required to leave their families and fill vacant 
positions across the country. They acted as both caregivers and medical 
doctors--as there was also a scarcity of doctors--to the sick and 
wounded.
  The Cadet Nurse Corps provided the support of health care system 
needed. By putting the needs of the Nation ahead of their own, these 
young women made it possible for Allied troops to receive the best 
possible medical care during a time of war.
  Although the uniforms of these dedicated cadet nurses were decorated 
with patches certified by the Secretary of the Army, and they served 
under the authority of commissioned officers, the Cadet Nurse Corps has 
never been recognized as a military organization.
  Today, many of these cadet nurses are no longer living. Those who do 
survive are in their seventies and eighties. Ironically, they are not 
entitled to use the veterans health care system, nor do they receive 
other benefits such as disability pay.
  Even more important, they rarely receive the recognition they deserve 
for their service to their country. And every year, as more of the 
cadet nurses pass away, it becomes too late to recognize them.
  These women served their country in a time of war. I believe they 
deserve to be recognized as veterans of that war effort. Therefore, I 
support veterans status for members of the Cadet Nurse Corps.
  I have introduced legislation that would accomplish this goal. I hope 
my colleagues will support this effort so we can finally properly 
recognize the cadet nurses for their outstanding service to this 
country.

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