Health System Reform
The American Nurses Association has been advocating for 20 years for health care reforms that would guarantee access to high-quality health care for all. Now, rising healthcare costs, increasing numbers of uninsured and underinsured individuals, and disparities in healthcare access and quality have created an emerging national consensus that the health care system is broken and must be fixed now. Any solution must involve ensuring that the supply of nurses is adequate to make universal access to care a reality.
ANA is proudly representing the nursing profession at health care summits and forums, and working with nurses, lawmakers, the Obama Administration, health care coalitions, the media and other participants to deliver nursing's message, develop solutions and take action.
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Nurse Stories on
Health Reform
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Mariah A. Taylor
Pediatric Nurse Practitioner
Portland, OR
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I work at a safety net clinic that serves lower-income uninsured and underinsured people. I became the primary care provider for a patient who was referred because he lacked insurance and money and couldn’t be seen in other settings. He had wounds that had gone unattended. I cleaned up his wounds, which I discovered were more than “skin deep.” He had osteomyelitis (inflammation of the bone and bone marrow) and could barely walk into the clinic without support. I arranged to have him seen for the diabetic condition at a local health clinic for the uninsured. It was fortunate that our clinic saw him immediately to stabilize his diabetic condition. He was provided with a free monitor, but the cost of test strips was prohibitive. His condition is improving because we orchestrated his care and provided needed supplies.
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