Oregon and the United States face a nursing shortage. A significant number of nurses are nearing retirement.

An increase in older people is going to increase the need for nurses.

Many nurses left the profession during the pandemic.

Nursing faculty in nursing programs is running short.

Enrollment in nursing school is not meeting expected demand. Central Oregon Community College has a great program if you are interested!

Nurses argue they need better working conditions and in some cases also better pay and benefits.

And there’s more.

House Bill 2408 in the Oregon Legislature doesn’t correct all those problems. What it would do is put Oregon into a Nurse Licensure Compact, joining with other states in a cooperative agreement to allow nurses to practice outside their own state. It would, in theory, make it easier for nurses to come to work in Oregon or work where they want.

It seems to make sense. The Oregon Association of Hospital and Health Systems backs it.

But if you click through on all the bill’s sponsors, they are only Republicans. The Oregon Nurses Association is also opposed. In a Legislature controlled by Democrats, those are two indicators the bill is in serious trouble.

In testimony Feb. 20, the nurses association asserted that participation in the compact could limit what Oregon could do to expand requirements and training for licensure. It may also limit what hospitals would do to retain current staff because it might be easier to bring new staff in.

Those aren’t bad points. We think the right lens is to look at it from the perspective of patients. Will this bill improve patient care?

Oregon needs to invest in nursing programs to ensure the state is producing enough nurses. Hospitals and other medical offices need to invest in their staff and keep them. Making it easier for nurses to work in Oregon by joining the compact will only really work if those other things happen, as well. Legislators should work to see that Oregon does all three.