***Governor Cuomo has signed into law the safe staffing bill!**

We are very pleased to report that Governor Cuomo has signed into law the safe staffing bill!! In early May, the bill passed both the Assembly and Senate.  This issue of safe staffing has been a priority issue for ANA-NY for years, and there were varied approaches to address this issue.  In the end, the bill that passed established clinical staffing committees in each general hospital to develop and oversee a clinical staffing plan.  The ANA-NY has always believed that this was the best way to ensure appropriate staffing levels. 

The legislation created a system that will rely on outcomes-based staffing, which is based on research and evidence-based practices, and require each hospital to establish an on-going committee to create, and have the authority to implement, nurse staffing plans that are specific to each unit of the hospital.  This legislation also requires the public reporting of these staffing plans and tracking of the outcomes of care.  The staffing model included in this legislation allows for staffing models that are appropriate for all care settings or solutions.  Additionally, the legislation addressed the need of ancillary staffing as well.  Too often, we have seen the elimination of other care team positions, which then shifts noncore patient care work to registered nurses.

We thank the bill’s sponsors, Assemblymember Aileen Gunther and Senator Gustavo Rivera, for their dedication and support of the profession and to this issue in particular. We thank Governor Cuomo for signing this important legislation into law. We look forward to the implementation of this law and to working with our members as they work with their facilities to develop the clinical staffing committees and clinical staffing plans.