I had the pleasure of meeting with Lilly Walsh (Legislative Aide and Correspondence Manager for Senator John Cornyn) and Savannah Bolender (Senior Policy Advisor for Representative Pat Fallon) last week when visiting their Washington DC offices.
I am thankful for the time they took to listen to my concerns regarding upcoming legislation that will affect healthcare for constituents in our district and impact veterans' healthcare in our country. Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists (CRNAs) have a proven track record for providing safe, cost-effective anesthesia care. They are vital to providing access to quality anesthesia care, especially in rural America.
I would love their support for (and bonus if they will co-sponsor) H.R. 2713/S.2418 “I CAN” Act. This bipartisan, bicameral piece of legislation will remove barriers for Advance Practice Registered Nurses (APRNs) in Medicare and Medicaid and increase access to care for the constituents in our district. I CAN be the solution to access to quality anesthesia care and decrease overall healthcare costs IF Congress will let me.
Nurses, including CRNAs, are the backbone of the healthcare system, but investments in nursing students, faculty, and programs are chronically underfunded. There was a nursing shortage before the pandemic, but nurses have left the profession in droves after the mental, emotional, and physical exhaustion caused by those trying times. Congress must make crucial investments today to ensure we have the workforce we need tomorrow. I urge my Congressmen to please support the increase in Title VIII program funding to $530 million for FY25 to meet the growing need for nurses. Nursing education programs struggle with a lack of financial support, staff, and preceptors. Please support H.R. 7002, the Nurse Faculty Shortage Reduction Act of 2024, to provide needed grant opportunities to expand teaching and clinical staff at nursing programs across the country.
Please oppose the inaccurately named Protecting Lifesaving Anesthesia for Veterans Act (H.R. 3347.S.2070). This bill would unnecessarily limit the VA from allowing CRNAs to work at the top of their education and training. This bill is opposed by over 40 different nursing organizations and would put physician paychecks ahead of patients. We need all anesthesia providers in the operating room to provide anesthesia and not provide “supervision” from the breakroom. The Chief CRNA at my hospital (an independent CRNA practice in a rural area of our district) is an Army veteran who independently provided anesthesia on the battlefield in Iraq and often to two soldiers at a time without having a physician anesthesiologist even remotely near. Why does he now need to have a physician anesthesiologist “oversee” him from the breakroom if he were to work in a VA facility today?
Representative Fallon and Senator Cornyn, thank you both for the welcome I received in your DC offices. I appreciate the time your staff took to listen to my concerns and the solutions I have to increase access to care and reduce healthcare costs for your constituents. I urge you to please consider supporting these pieces of legislation that will make a positive impact on the healthcare of not just your constituents but all Americans. I CAN be a solution if Congress will let me.
