Leading Healthcare Organization, American Academy of Nursing On Budget Deal
Washington, DC (PRWEB) October 17, 2013 -- The American Academy of Nursing is relieved that Congress and the White House have finally reopened the government. The health and wellness of the nation were adversely affected by this long standoff. Government shutdowns, or threats to shut down, jeopardize America's leadership in health research and knowledge and threaten the delivery of critical healthcare.
Furthermore, this escapade has caused a chill in the nursing and healthcare community. While the federal government shutdown dragged on from days to weeks, the shutdown delayed critical health and medical research and development.
Essential functions affected by the shutdown included:
• The National Institute of Health could not process new research grants, could not answer hotline calls about health questions, and was forced to turn away patients. NIH stopped laboratory experiments on flu vaccines, autism, and cancers.
• The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, US Department of Health and Human Services, could not fund new grants related to health services research initiatives.
• The Centers for Disease Control stopped its seasonal flu program and had "significantly reduced capacity to respond to outbreak investigations.
• While VA hospitals remained open, many services were disrupted and new applicants could not be processed, some 3.6 million veterans feared they would have disability and pension payments delayed.
This form of political posturing cannot occur again. The Academy calls upon the White House and Congress to come together and create a long term agreement on our national budget priorities.
About the Academy
The American Academy of Nursing (http://www.AANnet.org) serves the public and the nursing profession by advancing health policy and practice through the generation, synthesis, and dissemination of nursing knowledge. The Academy's more than 2,000 Fellows are nursing's most accomplished leaders in education, management, practice, and research. They have been recognized for their extraordinary contributions to nursing and health care.
Michael Marriott, http://www.AANnet.org, 202-777-1174, [email protected]
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