By Nancy Claflin, DNP, MS, RN, NEA-BC, CENP, CCRN-K, CPHQ, FNAHQ

NOVA’s 27th Annual Legislative Roundtable was held Friday, March 11, 2022 at DAV Headquarters in Washington, DC.  Participants were welcomed by TJ Wilcox-Olson, MHS, RN, NOVA President. 

Thelma Roach-Serry, BSN, RN, NE-BC, Chair, NOVA Legislative Committee, presented NOVA’s legislative agenda, assisted by Co-Chair Kelley Saindon, DNP, RN, CHPN, and Cecilia McVey, BSN, NHA, FAAN, Expert Advisor.  This was followed by presentations from staff from the Office of Nursing Services (ONS) in the Department of Veterans Affairs, representatives from Veterans Service Organizations (VSOs), national nursing organizations, and professional staff members from the House VA Committee.  The following topics were discussed:

• Successful passage of HR 5575, The VA Nurse and Physician Assistant RAISE Act was applauded, which will provide Title 38 healthcare providers (RNs, APRNs, PAs, CRNAs) with a pay raise and assist with staffing, recruitment, and retention; thanks to all supporting and helping with passage of bill 

• Asset Infrastructure and Review (AIR) Act, including information released and impact on veterans and families

• Budget, including passage of on-time budget; reform dysfunctional federal budget process to enable VA facilities to accurately plan and deliver care, support modern staffing models and enhance ability to recruit and retain qualified workforce

• Appropriate funding for Community Care that doesn’t interfere with internal medical care funds

• Adequate funding for nursing research 

• Support for Independent Budget

• Authorizing VA to receive reimbursements from TRICARE and Medicare

• Properly implementing VA and DOD health IT systems, including electronic health record

• Concerns regarding proposed nomination for Under Secretary for Health with need to maintain consistency and stability with leadership

• Improving access, strengthening VA’s capacity to delivery timely, high quality health care

• HR modernization, including repositioning HR staff back at medical centers, status of clinical shortages due to delays in recruitment and onboarding, time to hire metrics, processes used during COVID-19 to expedite hiring and onboarding, ensuring staffing to review policies and improve communication to speed hiring process, mandatory training of HR personnel on locality pay and Congressional authorities to enable VA to remain competitive with projected nursing staffing shortages

• Reviewing qualifications standards and pay levels for LPNs and NAs, providing hiring incentives to keep VA competitive, providing opportunities for career advancement and professional development at all levels

• Ensuring nursing workforce practices at full extent of education, training, and certification

• Development and implementation of national standards of practice within VA to ensure standard practice across state lines and virtually to meet patient care needs

• Further collaboration between DOD and VA

• Simplifying work environment and reducing employee burnout within VA; mental health support for nurses

• Workforce violence prevention

• Support for VA Crisis Line

• Correcting disparity between educational benefits for nurse practitioners and physicians

• Equitable compensation models for CRNAs and pharmacists; pay for LPNs

• Full practice authority for CRNAs; would automatically double workforce in VA with no additional funding; enhance implementation of advanced techniques for pain management

• Reviewing and enhancing CRNA education funding

• Supporting Title VIII nursing workforce funding

• Supporting education for palliative and hospice care clinicians; providing equitable access to in-person care for palliative care and hospice veterans

• Providing placement and support for nursing students

• Providing benefits, health care, and justice for veterans of all eras exposed to toxic substances; comprehensive toxic exposure reform

• Improving claims process; consider treatment of presumptive conditions as claim for disability compensation, implement modernized appeals process, reinstate pre-decisional review period, require VA to accept private medical evidence; enhance digital claims processing; improve accuracy of disability compensation related to military sexual trauma

• Enhancing veterans survivor benefits

• Ensuring access to long term care for aging veterans and veterans with service connected disabilities; expanding nursing home eligibility and long term care options

• Promoting equity in health services and benefits for women veterans, including equal access to contraceptive care; underserved, and minority veteran populations

• Providing resources for homelessness; improving mental health services and suicide prevention efforts to reduce veteran suicide

• Strengthening care and research for mental health and traumatic brain injuries

• Providing oversight of transition assistance program pathway attendance for veterans after leaving military service; improving education benefits

• Supporting automatic enrollment in VA

• Supporting the STRONG (Supporting The Resiliency of Our Nation’s Great Veterans) Veterans Act of 2022, H.R. 6411 (training to support veterans’ mental health, veterans’ crisis line, outreach to veterans, mental health care delivery and research)

• Assessing Vet Centers to ensure adequate staffing, resources, and funding

• Addressing extremism in veterans

• Further developing and expanding telehealth

• Supporting Nurse Cadet Corps recognition

• NOVA members included: Board of Directors members President Taryn-Janae Wilcox-Olson, MHS, RN, VA Portland Health Care System; President-Elect Catherine Giasson, DNP, MHA, RN, NE-BC, VA Central Western Massachusetts Health Care System; Secretary/Treasurer Ruth Holmes, MSA, BSN, RN, Office of the Medical Inspector (Retired); Immediate Past President Kelly Skinner, DNP, APRN, NP-C, GNP-BC, CRRN, WCC, CFCN, VA Boston Health Care System; Membership Secretary Theresa Presley, MSN, RN, CNL, CCRN, VA Boston Healthcare System; Director Eula Davis, MPH, MSN, RN-AMB, Michael J. Crescenz Medical Center Hospital Philadelphia; Director Miriam Rogers Holy, MSN, RN, ACM; VA Maryland Health Care System, Director Betty Ogren, LPN, Northern Indiana VA Health Care System; Cynthia Solomon-Ramos, MS, RN, ACNP-BC, Central Virginia VA Healthcare System; and Kelley Saindon, DNP, RN, CHPN, Edith Nourse Rogers Memorial VA Bedford, and Executive Director Deb Dupnik.  Also attending were Past President Thelma Roach-Serry, BSN, RN, NE-BC, Chair Legislative Committee; Past President Cecilia McVey RN, MHA, FAAN, Expert Advisor, Past President Nurse Emeritus Nancy Claflin, DNP, MS, RN, NEA-BC, CENP, CCRN-K, CPHQ, FNAHQ; Teresa Morris, Director, Advocacy and Government Relations, and Erica Lazarow, Meetings Coordinator.