Protect NY Patient Access to Affordable, Quality Care; Recognize Nurse Anesthetists
- Target:
- New York State Legislature
- Region:
- United States of America
- Website:
- www.nysana.com
Nurse anesthesia is the oldest advanced nursing specialty. In fact, Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists (CRNAs) have been practicing in New York for over 120 years. Existing requirements for masters level education, clinical experience, national certification examination, continuing education and re-certification have resulted in the high quality, professional standard of care exhibited by CRNAs.
Nurse anesthetists represent one of the most cost-effective, highly professional and safe health care providers in practice today. CRNAs actually administer over 27 million anesthetics each year; in all types of settings and for all categories of procedures. They are also the sole providers of anesthesia care in the majority of our nation's rural hospitals as well as in many of the state’s underserved, urban areas.
Sadly, New York remains one of a very few states in the country that does not fully recognize the practice of nurse anesthesia! Without codification of the practice, residents across the state are increasingly losing access to necessary, affordable and quality health care. In addition, highly skilled, advanced practice nurses are being denied opportunities to practice as well as struggle to obtain malpractice insurance coverage.
New York State is facing a severe shortage of health care providers, including nurses and nurse anesthetists. Rising health care costs, fewer providers in underserved areas and competition from neighboring states, have all had a profoundly negative impact on our current health care system. Nationally CRNAs make up almost half the total anesthesia workforce but they represent only one quarter of NYS's total anesthesia workforce. This means NY citizens are paying more for anesthesia services than the rest of the nation and our rural and underserved areas have access to fewer anesthesia providers.
Presently, nearly 50% of our recent New York State nurse anesthesia graduates are relocating to other states where they can practice to the full extent of their education, training and certification. New York can ill-afford to lose any more of its quality nursing population.
We need your help! Please contact your legislator and tell him or her to support S.3288/A.1727 and protect patients by preserving this vital health care profession.
We the undersigned, call on the NYS Legislature to pass legislation to formally recognize the advanced practice of nurse anesthesia. Twenty years of legislative inaction is long enough!
New York State must act now to protect its oldest advanced practice nursing specialty. Statutory protection is necessary to: protect patient choice; improve access to care; combat escalating health care costs; ensure competent providers and promote professional accountability.
On behalf of the nearly 1,000 CRNAs practicing in NYS and the patients they serve - many of whom are your constituents - we need your support to protect the profession of nurse anesthesia and preserve vital health care services all across New York State.
You can further help this campaign by sponsoring it
The Protect NY Patient Access to Affordable, Quality Care; Recognize Nurse Anesthetists petition to New York State Legislature was written by Diane Frazier and is in the category Health at GoPetition.