A bill passed last week by the Legislature is designed to address nursing shortages throughout Washington. Good idea. The question, however, is whether the state’s hospital system will still be in existence by the time the bill takes effect.
OK, we admit that is an overstatement. But the point is that there are issues with American health care that are beyond the reach of lawmakers in Olympia and require frequent and boisterous warnings.
First things first, however. The state House of Representatives last week approved Senate Bill 5236 by a vote of 92-6. The Senate previously had passed the bill, 35-13. Sen. Lynda Wilson, R-Vancouver, opposed the measure, and all other Southwest Washington representatives voted in favor.
If signed by Gov. Jay Inslee, the bill will require hospitals to adopt staffing standards, including staff-patient ratios, and meet those standards at least 80 percent of the time.
The issue long has been raised by nurses unions, and it has come to a head since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Employees say they are overworked because of short staffing; nationally, an inordinate number of nurses have left the profession in the past three years.
“It’s not enough to just thank them for the work they are doing,” Rep. Marcus Riccelli, D-Spokane, said of nurses. “We have to make sure that they have safe standards for staffing.”
Indeed, adequate staffing is beneficial for nurses — and for patients. An exhausted or distracted nurse can create a dangerous situation for those in their care.
To additionally alleviate the pressure, lawmakers approved a bill permitting Washington to enter a multistate nurse licensing compact. That would allow nurses to attain licenses acceptable in multiple states, presumably making it easier for them to work where the need is the greatest.
It is the staffing standards, however, that have drawn the most attention. The approved bill leaves staffing standards up to individual hospitals (and, in many cases, their labor unions) rather than imposing a one-size-fits-all mandate. The biggest change will be requirements that those standards are established and then followed. In the process, the bill takes into consideration the concerns of both workers and administrators, resulting in a compromise that is acceptable to members of both political parties.
Hospital officials long have opposed strict staffing standards, saying a shortage of available nurses and financial difficulties make hiring difficult. That brings up the big-picture view of the issue.
Washington hospitals last year lost more than $2 billion — roughly triple the losses of 2021. That is a story being echoed throughout the nation and it has led to the closure of numerous facilities, particularly in rural areas.
In September, the president of the American Hospital Association said, “This deserves the immediate attention of policymakers at every level of government. America can’t be strong without hospitals being strong. … We are now dealing with the aftershocks and the aftermath of the most significant public health crisis in a century. America’s hospitals are under severe financial pressure.”
Cassie Sauer, CEO of the Washington State Hospital Association, added: “Some hospitals are reducing services. Without action, we could actually see hospital closures.” That requires attention from Congress.
The Legislature’s effort to improve working conditions for nurses and to improve patient care is warranted. But it doesn’t begin to take effect until 2025; American health care might look much different by then.
