Legislature(2003 - 2004)
04/09/2003 01:31 PM Senate HES
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* first hearing in first committee of referral
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= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
SB 154-NURSE EDUC LOAN REPAYMENT PROGRAM
CHAIR FRED DYSON announced SB 154 to be up for consideration.
SENATOR HOLLIS FRENCH, sponsor, said that a main question for
him was to whom to make the loans available. Just making them
available to Alaskans wouldn't produce enough nurses to fill the
gap.
We're thousands and thousands of nurses behind where
we need to be and so we realized as we worked our way
through the problem and got familiarized with it is we
had to not only make it available to Alaskans going to
Alaskan nursing schools, but make it available to any
person who wanted to come here and become a nurse.
The next thing he thought about was the length of the repayment
period. Part of the reason they came up with paying someone back
for five years is by letting them work in the Alaskan economy
for that long, they would come to know and love the state and
stay. The available funding is capped at $10,000 because that is
about what it would cost to go to an Alaskan nursing school. To
the slippery slope issue he responded that most programs have
those problems and you just have to draw the line somewhere.
SENATOR GARY WILKEN said his comments on the prior bill apply to
this one as well.
MR. RICK URION, Director, Occupational Licensing, said the
administration hadn't taken a position on this bill, "But, it is
an exceptionally good idea."
He said the Board of Nursing is a good place for it to be and
pointed out that the cost of the board is born by the nurses.
But, the cost of this program is probably outside of that
purview and the legislature might want to find funding for the
program other than from the licensees, themselves.
MS. CAMILLE SOLEIL, Alaska Nursing Association, said she
appreciated their support of this bill.
MS. CATHERINE GEISSEL, Alaska Nurse Practitioner's Association,
supported SB 154. She said it is in the best interests of
Alaska's public safety to increase the number of nurses
positions that are currently being filled by unlicensed
personnel who make mistakes.
MS. PAT SENNER, President, Alaska Nurses Association, supported
SB 154. She showed them a graph indicating that the average age
of a nurse in this state is 45 to 46, with 72 percent of them
being over the age of 40. The graph should not be a bell curve.
Most hospital nurses have to retire in their 50s, because they
can no longer do the heavy work required of them. It is
estimated that in the next 5 to 10 years, 50 percent of the
nursing workforce will leave. The School of Nursing is doubling
their number of graduates by 2006. Part of the funding for that,
$2.25 million, came from the private sector and the other part
from the university. This bill is encouraging the individual to
consider a nursing career and to stay in it.
MS. DEB ERICKSON, Deputy Director, Division of Public Health,
supported SB 154 for all of the stated reasons. She added that
Alaska's senior population is expected to triple by 2025 and an
aging population has attendant increases in chronic diseases and
other health problems, which will add to the demand side of this
problem. The nursing shortage affects quality of care, access to
health care and cost of health care. "This program will provide
a financial incentive for recruitment and retention of nurses
that will benefit all Alaskans."
MS. ANGELA RICK, nursing student, asked if money was coming from
the federal program.
SENATOR FRENCH explained that they wrote the bill so that it
could some day receive money from that source, but it's not
anticipated they would get it at this point.
MS. RICK said she supported this bill.
SENATOR WILKEN moved to pass SB 154 from committee with
individual recommendations and attached fiscal note. There were
no objections and it was so ordered.
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