FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, Thursday, May 3, 2007
CONTACT: Yoni Cohen, (202) 225-3202
Deborah Setliff (LaTourette), 800-447-0529

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- U.S. Representatives Pete Stark (D-CA), Chairman of the Committee on Ways and Means Subcommittee on Health, and Steven LaTourette (R-OH) today introduced the Safe Nursing and Patient Care Act. The bill would strictly limit the use of forced overtime for nurses. The bipartisan legislation is endorsed by the major organizations representing nurses including the American Nurses Association, AFL-CIO, AFSCME, AFT, SEIU, and UAN.

"Mandatory overtime exhausts nurses mentally and physically, placing patients’ lives at risk and driving nurses out of the profession,” said Stark. "We limit the time that truck drivers and pilots can work to protect public safety. Safe nursing is in the public interest as well."

"We ask so much of our nurses, and they do remarkable work under constant stress. We shouldn't force them to work overtime hours when they are mentally and physically exhausted," LaTourette said. "It's not good for the nurse and it's even worse for patients."

The Safe Nursing and Patient Care Act would strictly limit the use of mandatory overtime for nurses to situations in which an official state of emergency is declared by federal, state or a local government. These limits would be included in Medicare’s provider agreements. The bill would not apply to nursing homes since there are alternative staffing and quality measures moving forward for those facilities.

The legislation would provide HHS with new tools to enforce these standards. It would also protect nurses from discrimination by employers who continue to force them into working hours beyond what they believe is safe for quality care.

"No patient wants to be cared for by a nurse at the end of a 16 hour shift. That's when errors are most likely to occur," said Cathy Glasson, a registered nurse with 20 years of experience and the President of the Nurse Alliance of SEIU. “Short staffing and forced overtime are also huge factors in the growing number of nurses leaving the profession. To keep patients and nurses safe, Congress should end this dangerous practice. "

"Mandatory overtime creates a danger to patients and is an injustice to nurses. Forcing nurses to work extra shifts puts the health and safety of all at risk," said American Nurses Association President Rebecca M. Patton, MSN, RN, CNOR. "This legislation provides much needed guidelines for hospitals, protects nurses, and ensures safer patient care. The ANA applauds the efforts of lawmakers who support the Safe Nursing and Patient Care Act."