Silver Spring, Maryland–(ENEWSPF)–March 17, 2010. The American Nurses Association (ANA), the largest nursing organization in the U.S., joined a coalition of organizations at an event on Capitol Hill today to urge Congress to pass health reform legislation now. The coalition unveiled a letter with signatures from over 200 national organizations appealing to lawmakers about the critical need for health reform, and encouraging support for the current reform legislation.
A copy of the letter follows.
March 16, 2010
Dear Member of Congress:
On behalf of the American Nurses Association (ANA), the only full-service professional organization representing the interests of the nation’s 2.9 million Registered Nurses, I am writing to urge you to vote yes on health care reform.
Nurses across this country have waited decades for this historic moment and the time is at hand. While political maneuvering has delayed reform, our patients’ needs have not been on hold. The uninsured and underinsured continue to delay or forgo much-needed care; they continue to arrive in the emergency rooms across the country for conditions that could have been easily prevented with access to primary care — we are all paying a high price for inaction. Quality health care for all should not be a partisan or political issue.
While we recongize that no legislation is perfect, the vote before you represents a rare chance to effect change that will positively impact people’s lives. This legislation will enact very real and much-needed insurance reforms, it will place a new focus on wellness and prevention, improving access to primary care and expanding coverage to over 30 million people.
America’s nurses understand the cost of inaction — we cannot afford to wait, and doing nothing must not be an option. ANA and nurses around the country are ready to stand with you. We are almost there. We hope you will set politics aside and vote to make much-needed, meaningful reform a reality. Please vote YES on health care reform.
Sincerely,
Rose Gonzalez, MPS, RN
Director, Government Affairs
Source: nursingworld.org
