Nurse Staffing and Complaints of Price Gouging by Staffing Agencies
The Academy of Medical Surgical Nurses (AMSN) is aware of the concerns our members are expressing regarding the recent letter from a group of Members of Congress to the White House COVID-19 Response Team Coordinator.
The letter requested an investigation into the activities of nurse staff agencies for possible anticompetitive activities or violations of consumer protection laws. This is not an investigation into the amount of money travel nurses make nor is it an opportunity for the government to indicate what they should make. The focus lies within how much of a “cut” the agency should receive.
AMSN agrees with the statements of other key nursing organizations that while the request for a federal investigation may have merit, it does not address the larger and more important issues facing the nursing profession.
The United States will be short an estimated 1.2 million registered nurses by 2030. The profession cannot afford to hemorrhage its workforce any longer. Nurses deserve to work in practice environments that provide safe working conditions and allow nurses to practice at the top of their license to provide high quality care.
They deserve to work in health systems that have up-to-date practices around safe staffing, enhanced models of care and up-to-date technology. They should have measures in place to protect staff from workplace violence. Not only do nurses deserve this, but the patients they serve deserve this as well.
Our healthcare system is failing, and we must address the issues that have plagued our facilities for years. If we do not put our efforts toward this, we will continue to lose nurses from the profession. AMSN urges our elected officials to take action to address the staffing shortage and work environment issues facing our nation’s nurses and work to rebuild America’s nursing workforce.