Dear Joan,
Nurses
are on the front lines of the opioid crisis – and letting
them be a part of the public health response is just common sense.
But a bill that would make this possible is stuck in the Senate: we need to push our Senators to include this bill's language when they vote on a larger opioid response plan next month!
This bill has bipartisan support but has been stuck in negotiations for more than a month. We have to help move it forward: it’s critical that any opioid response plan – like any public health crisis – includes nurses.
That’s why we fought so hard for H.R. 6, which overcame amendments and
obstacles to extend prescribing authority for medication-assisted
treatment (MAT) to nurse practitioners and physician assistants, while
expanding the definition to include clinical nurse specialists,
certified registered nurse anesthetists, and certified nurse midwives.
Public health experts estimate that under this plan, another 170,000 nurses would be equipped to help fight the opioid epidemic. Just think of how many lives this group, collectively, could save.
Thanks for taking action as a part of our Year of Adocacy to ask the Senate to give nurses the tools they need to save lives.
Sincerely,
Matt Fitting
Advocacy and Engagement Specialist
American Nurses Association
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