Source: United States Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND)
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND) today highlighted support from outside groups for his Travel Nursing Agency Transparency Study Act. Introduced last week, the legislation requires the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to conduct a study and report to Congress on the business practices and the effects of hiring agencies across the health care industry during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I appreciate the strong support from a wide array of stakeholders in the health care industry for the Travel Nursing Agency Transparency Study Act,” said Senator Cramer. “Nurses serve on the front line and provide an essential service to our communities, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, hiring agencies are reportedly taking advantage of the demand created by workforce shortages, charging inflated rates, and keeping a significant percentage for their own profits. Such business operations of these agencies could have far-reaching effects on the quality of our health care system in rural America and must be reviewed. The Travel Nursing Agency Transparency Study Act ensures the business practices of these agencies get the critical sunshine they need. We all deserve a better understanding.”
The health care industry was already experiencing a shortage of professionals prior to the pandemic, but COVID-19 exacerbated this issue throughout the country, especially in rural communities. Travel nurses were employed to help meet the rising demands. Over the past few years, there have been anecdotal reports of hiring agencies inflating prices and monopolizing the nursing workforce, potentially leading to a number of concerning consequences for providers, patients, and taxpayers, including inflated prices for care, further nursing shortages, and continued strain on the entire health care system. Learn more here.
Senator Cramer’s legislation is supported by the following groups:
What They Are Saying:
“The North Dakota Medical Association supports efforts to reduce health care costs and supports Senator Cramer’s efforts to analyze the practices of travel nursing agencies and how it impacts health care and costs. This is a complex issue and deserves a closer look. NDMA is grateful to Senator Cramer for recognizing the situation and bringing the issue forward,” said North Dakota Medical Association Executive Director Courtney Koebele.
“Hospitals in North Dakota were already experiencing workforce challenges before COVID-19 came along and made them worse. Ballooning wages and the disparity in agency nurse and staff nurse wages over the past two years have grown to a crisis level. The high fees paid to these staffing agencies are simply unsustainable. We support Sen. Cramer’s proposal to study the business and payment practices of nurse staffing agencies to better understand how such extreme prices negatively affect patients and hospitals and to find solutions that prevent conduct that only makes the nurse shortage worse,” said North Dakota Hospital Association President Tim Blasl.
“Travel nurse staffing agencies are charging hospitals and health systems unsustainable rates during the pandemic. The resulting financial burden makes it harder to maintain the clinical staff needed to care for patients, especially in rural communities. We thank Senator Cramer for his leadership in calling for a thorough study of these agencies’ problematic practices,” said American Hospital Association Executive Vice President Stacey Hughes.
“We commend Senator Cramer for introducing this important legislation to investigate the practices of travel nurse agencies, and we encourage members of Congress to support its swift passage. Nursing homes and assisted living communities are facing a historic workforce shortage, forcing many to turn to temporary staffing agencies in order to ensure residents have enough caregivers. However, many of these agencies are charging two to three times more than pre-pandemic rates, depleting precious resources from long term care facilities when we would prefer to invest in full-time, dedicated caregivers.?It’s time to shine a light on these travel nurse agencies,” said American Health Care Association/National Center for Assisted Living (AHCA/NCAL) President and CEO Mark Parkinson.
“The North Dakota Long Term Care Association is excited to support the legislation introduced by Senator Cramer called the Travel Nursing Agency Transparency Study Act. Our legislative committee has been studying this issue for over a year and has concluded the best solution is not state legislation but federal legislation to bring transparency and facts to this important issue. In the past year two ND nursing facilities have closed or announced closure and sufficient staffing and the cost of contract nursing have been central issues in both cases. We applaud Senator Cramer’s action on this proposed legislation, it can’t pass soon enough,” said North Dakota Long Term Care Association President Shelly Peterson.
“The National Rural Health Association (NRHA) applauds Senator Cramer for introducing S. 4352, the Traveling Nursing Agency Transparency Study Act, directing the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to study the impact the surge in traveling nurse costs have had on providers. In our historically underserved rural communities, the extreme rise in salaries coupled with increased utilization has created a crisis. NRHA urges Congress to act on this important legislation to further understand the impact traveling nurses have had on the rural health care workforce,” said National Rural Health Association Chief Executive Officer Alan Morgan.
“We are pleased to offer our support for your legislation because it would help to gain critical insights into unfortunate practices employed during the COVID-19 pandemic and identify solutions to ensure staffing agencies remain a dependable partner for hospitals and healthcare providers in the future,” said Vizient, Inc. Senior Vice President of Public Policy and Government Relations Shoshana Krilow.