109th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 6186
To amend the Public Health Service Act to authorize grants for
the purpose of carrying out activities to increase the number of faculty
members at collegiate schools of nursing in States with significant shortages
of nurses.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
September 26, 2006
Mr. HAYWORTH introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee
on Energy and Commerce
A BILL
To amend the Public Health Service Act to authorize grants for
the purpose of carrying out activities to increase the number of faculty
members at collegiate schools of nursing in States with significant shortages
of nurses.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United
States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the `America's Partnership for Nursing Education
Act of 2006'.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
The Congress finds as follows:
(1) Many States with rapidly-increasing populations have a serious shortage
of nurses.
(2) A new Federal program is needed to support State and private efforts
to address the lack of capacity in schools of nursing at colleges and
universities.
(3) Such lack of capacity is the critical driving force behind the serious
shortage of nurses.
(4) The nursing shortage has a detrimental impact on the quality of care
patients receive in health care settings, and plays a role in the rising
costs of health care.
(5) States that have established partnerships with educational institutions
to develop strategies to address the nursing shortage, and that have allocated
funds toward implementing the strategies, are well suited to make effective
use of matching Federal funds.
SEC. 3. INCREASING NUMBER OF QUALIFIED FACULTY AT COLLEGIATE SCHOOLS OF
NURSING IN STATES WITH SIGNIFICANT SHORTAGES OF NURSES.
Title VIII of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 296 et seq.) is amended
by adding at the end the following:
`PART J--ADDITIONAL PROGRAMS
`SEC. 861. INCREASING NUMBER OF FACULTY AT COLLEGIATE SCHOOLS OF NURSING
IN STATES WITH SIGNIFICANT SHORTAGES OF NURSES.
`(a) In General- The Secretary may make grants to qualifying States for
the purpose of carrying out activities to increase the number of faculty
at collegiate schools of nursing in qualifying States in order to assist
in alleviating the shortage of nurses in such States.
`(b) Qualifying States- A State is a qualifying State for purposes of this
section if the State meets the following conditions:
`(1) The population of the State increased by more than 50 percent between
1995 and 2005 (inclusive), according to data from the Bureau of the Census.
`(2) The State is projected to have fewer than 555 nurses per 100,000
State residents by 2020, according to data from the Health Resources and
Services Administration.
`(3) As of January 1, 2006, the State had a program in place to assist
in increasing the number of faculty at collegiate schools of nursing.
`(1) IN GENERAL- The purposes for which a grant under subsection (a) may
be expended for a collegiate school of nursing include salaries, benefits,
training, and related expenses for increasing the number of faculty, and
other operational costs necessary to increase such number, relative to
the average number of such faculty at the school for the fiscal year preceding
the first fiscal year for which such a grant is made for the school.
`(2) LIMITATION- A grant under subsection (a) may not be expended for
any capital expenses.
`(d) Maintenance of Effort- A grant may be made under subsection (a) for
a fiscal year only if the qualifying State involved, and each collegiate
school of nursing for which the grant will be expended, agree to maintain
expenditures at such school for the purpose described in subsection (a)
at a level that is not less than the average level of such expenditures
maintained by the State and the school, respectively, for such purpose for
the five-year period preceding the first fiscal year for which a grant under
subsection (a) is made with respect to the school.
`(e) Reports to Congress- For each fiscal year for which amounts are appropriated
under subsection (f), the Secretary shall submit to the Congress a report
that identifies the collegiate schools of nursing with respect to which
grants under subsection (a) have been made and that provides an evaluation
of the extent to which the grants have been effective in carrying out the
purpose described in subsection (a).
`(f) Authorization of Appropriations- For the purpose of carrying out this
section, there is authorized to be appropriated $20,000,000 for each of
the fiscal years 2007 through 2011.'.
END
