MNA Blog (Page 60)

Recent news and updates from the Minnesota Nurses Association.

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In: Healthcare, Home, Legislative Policy, Minnesota Nurses Association, Politics

By Laura Sayles

MNA Government Affairs SpecialistVersion 2

This year the legislative session starts much later than usual, even for the second year of the biennium. Session begins on Tuesday, March 8, 2016, and it’s expected that the pace will be fast and furious for ten weeks until adjournment in May, 2016. Last year’s session required a short Special Session to pass some of the omnibus bills that didn’t pass during the regular session, but not all the work got finished. Taxes and transportation are still on the table, and, by most accounts, those are the two subjects that will dominate the 2016 Session.
… Read more about: Three Weeks until the 2016 Session Starts  »

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In: Activism, Bernie Sanders, Elections, Home, Nurses

Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders stopped by a reception to speak to Registered Nurse Members of the Minnesota Nurses Association.  Hundreds of MNA members have organized “Nurses4Bernie” rallies in Minnesota and Iowa to drum up support for the Democratic Presidential candidate.  After the event, Sanders spoke at the Humphrey-Mondale fundraiser dinner in St. Paul, Minnesota.
… Read more about: Video: Bernie Sanders Speaks to Minnesota Nurses Association Members  »

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In: Bernie Sanders, Home

(St. Paul) – February 12, 2016 – Democratic Presidential candidate Bernie Sanders told Minnesota Nurses Association members the healthcare system doesn’t allow them to do their job. The Vermont Senator spoke at a private reception on Friday afternoon before attending the Humphrey-Mondale Dinner in St. Paul.

“When 29 million people have no health insurance, when many people have high deductibles and high co-payments, when we pay the highest prices in the world for prescription drugs, you cannot do the job you are trained and dedicated to do,” Sanders said to the crowd of more than 80 nurses.

Many of these MNA members have held “Nurses4Bernie” events in Minnesota and Iowa to raise support for the only candidate who supports a Single Payer initiative.
… Read more about: Press Release: Bernie Sanders Speaks at Minnesota Nurses Association Event  »

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In: Home, Issues

Nurse Talking To PatientBy Rose Roach, MNA Executive DirectorRose photo

I was honored to serve on Governor Dayton’s Health Care Financing Task Force, which completed its work on January 15, 2016 with a package of recommendations to be forwarded to the Governor and the Legislature. On behalf of the nurses I represented on that task force, I proudly voted yes for the overall set of recommendations which included important steps in providing better access and in some instances, more affordable, healthcare options for patients including: extending MinnesotaCare to cover people up to 275% of Federal Poverty Level; repealing the sunsetting of the provider tax that is needed to continue MinnesotaCare; covering adult immigrants and their children, regardless of immigration status, up to 200% of the Federal Poverty level; and funding an economic study to determine the long-term financing for a healthcare system that puts people over profits.
… Read more about: With Healthcare, We’re Patients, Not Consumers  »

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In: Elections, Healthcare, Hospitals, Nurses, Politics

By Rose Roach, MNA Executive DirectorRose photo

 

I was honored to serve on Governor Dayton’s Health Care Financing Task Force, which completed its work on January 15, 2016 with a package of recommendations to be forwarded to the Governor and the Legislature. On behalf of the nurses I represented on that task force, I proudly voted yes for the overall set of recommendations which included important steps in providing better access and in some instances, more affordable, healthcare options for patients including: extending MinnesotaCare to cover people up to 275% of Federal Poverty Level; repealing the sunsetting of the provider tax that is needed to continue MinnesotaCare; covering adult immigrants and their children, regardless of immigration status, up to 200% of the Federal Poverty level; and funding an economic study to determine the long-term financing for a healthcare system that puts people over profits.
… Read more about: With Healthcare, We’re Patients, Not Consumers  »

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In: Elections, Home, Issues

joekatieBy MNA member Joe Howard, RN, Essentia Health-Duluth

I took my nine-year-old daughter Katie to Senator Bernie Sanders’ rally in Duluth on January 26. What an experience!

As a nurse, I like Sanders’ platform that addresses the blatant inequalities that exist in our country. As a father, I know he cares about a brighter future for my daughters.

Listening to the speech with my daughter opened my eyes to how far we have drifted to a society of the haves and the have nots.

I felt uneasy trying to explain why it is okay for women to get paid less, why it is okay for graduates to be saddled with heavy student loan debt, and why skin color might be a factor in not getting a job or in going to jail.
… Read more about: MNA Blog: Sanders rally was eye-opening experience  »

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In: Home

Welcome to MNA’s new website!

We’ve redesigned and modernized our website to better serve MNA members. Members told us they wanted a clean, uncluttered design that’s easy to navigate and find ways to get involved and active in our union.

Here are some of the highlights:

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In: Home, Issues

By Mathew Keller RN JD, Regulatory and Policy Nursing Specialist

kellerjan2016

In a decision that has shocked pediatric surgeons across the state, Florida recently repealed a 38-year-old rule establishing state standards for pediatric cardiac surgery.

The decision comes on the heels of a scathing investigative report by CNN, which found that St. Mary’s Medical Center in West Palm Beach had an abysmal record in performing pediatric cardiac surgeries — including a death rate three times the national average — and was failing to meet the state’s quality standards, which include proficiency in performing the surgeries as well as a mechanism for outside physicians to conduct an expert panel review of such surgical programs.
… Read more about: Florida dumps surgical standards after failing hospital donates to GOP  »

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In: Home, Press Releases

(St. Paul) – (January 15, 2016) – Members of the Minnesota Nurses Association call on state lawmakers to implement the recommendations of the Governor’s Health Care Financing Task Force, which appointees passed on Friday. Nurses applaud the task force’s work to move Minnesota closer to ensuring that every patient in the state can access affordable healthcare.

Governor Mark Dayton appointed a board of policy experts and healthcare advocates to the Health Care Financing Task Force in 2015. The task force agreed on a slate of recommendations to send to the legislature, including studying different models of payor systems. The board believes lawmakers should study the costs and benefits of a “Single Payer” or a publicly-financed, privately-delivered universal healthcare model.
… Read more about: Press Release: MNA Nurses Urge Lawmakers to Adopt Task Force Recommendations  »