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8 J U L Y / A U G U S T 2 0 0 5 C A L I F O R N I A N U R S E News | Briefs C all or write your representatives today to show your support for the following CNA-sponsored bills. This package of bills is intended to help offset the future collision of an aging RN and RN faculty workforce and an aging population. They save exist- ing RNs from needless injury and put programs in place for education of new RNs. Visit www.assembly.ca.gov and www.senate.ca.gov to find your legisla- tors. This information is current as of press time, but for the latest, please visit www.calnurses.org. NURSING EDUCATION EXPANSION, AB 232 by Assembly Members Juan Arambula (Fresno) and Jerome Horton (Ingle- wood); This bill standardizes prerequi- site admission criteria for all public registered nurse prelicensure programs in California in order to streamline the process for RN students. The bill passed out of the Assembly and is pending in the Senate Education Committee. We are currently pursuing funding for nursing student slots to address the waiting lists in California nursing pro- grams through the budget process. LIFT TEAMS AND EQUIPMENT, SB 363 by Senate Pro Tem Don Perata (East Bay); The bill requires all General Acute Care Hospitals (GACHs), except rural hospitals, to implement "zero lift" poli- cies on all shifts and provide lift teams, lifting equipment, and training to healthcare workers in order to avoid se- rious injuries. According to the Alpha Fund, the insurer of California's district hospitals and a supporter of the bill, pa- tient repositioning is the top cause of disability-generating injuries. The Uni- versity of California and the California Hospital Association are in opposition. This bill went to the Governor last year with 6,000 letters of support from reg- istered nurses, but was vetoed per the request of the CHA and the UC. The bill passed out of the Senate and is pending a hearing in the Assembly Labor Committee. HOSPITAL CLOSURE REPORTS, SB 499 by Senator Richard Alarcón (San Fer- nando Valley); SB 499 will require a hospital, prior to issuing notice to the Department of Health Services of a planned elimination of emergency medical services or closure of the hos- pital, to prepare a public health and safety report. The report will contain the state of their finances, provide more in-depth data on the effect a downgrade or closure will have on the community, and inform the commu- nity if the hospital has received a pur- chase offer from another hospital operator. This will allow the commu- nity to more accurately assess the rea- sons for a proposed downgrade or closure. The bill passed out of the Sen- ate and is pending a hearing before the Assembly Health Committee. CNA is also pursuing $4 million funding through the Budget process for a CNA sponsored bill from last year, SB 1245 (Kuehl-Los Angeles). Once funded and implemented, this law will prepare a new pool of qualified candi- dates for nursing faculty by expanding an innovative program, the Entry Level Master's (ELM) Program that has been successfully implemented at San Francisco State University. The ELM program as operated by CSU San Fran- cisco collects student fees for the pre- licensure sequence that covers nearly half the cost of the program. SB 1245 provides an incentive to establish ELM programs at four CSU's by funding up to half of the remaining cost to the uni- versity for up to 20 students. Since the CSU program must already have a BRN-approved RN undergraduate pre- licensure program, this program can be implemented through an abbrevi- ated process, saving administrative cost and time for the BRN as well. 2005 Legislative Update