NEW YORK NURSE: April 2008
NYSNA members traveled to Albany on Feb. 26 to lobby state legislators on the proposed state budget and how it would affect health care and nursing.
They urged that funding be included in the budget for nursing education, including nursing scholarships, and opposed cuts to Medicaid.
NYSNA President Linda O’Brien was accompanied by Victoria Arrick, member of the Council on Legislation; Patricia Kane, chair of the Council on Legislation; Eileen Dunn, Delegate Assembly member; Patricia Holloman, Delegate Assembly member; Christine Saltzberg, member of the Board of Directors; and Winnie Kennedy, member of the Board of Directors.
They were assisted by NYSNA staff and lobbyists Tracy Tress and Artie Malkin of the firm Malkin & Ross. They held seven meetings with policy makers, including several committee chairs, Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno, and Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver.
NYSNA and the New York Organization of Nurse Executives held a joint lobbying day on March 11 to inform legislators about a bill that would require RNs in New York to earn bachelor’s degrees within 10 years of licensure.
NYSNA members in attendance included Karen Ballard, Marilyn Dollinger, Mary Finnin, Jessica Zambrano, and President O’Brien.