A Constituent Member of

PRACTICE OF ALL REGISTERED NURSES IN VERMONT

VSNA supports:

• The protection of the public and the integrity of the nursing profession by assuring that only licensed registered nurses (RNs) are the qualified providers in delivering professional nursing care.
• Individual professional licensure of all RNs and opposes the granting of licensure waivers and institutional licensure.
• Recognition of the Vermont State Board of Nursing (VSBON) as the regulating body for the practice of RNs including all advanced practice registered nurses (APRN).
• Elimination of practice barriers and opposition to legislation restrictive to nursing practice.
• Evaluation of proposed legislation and regulatory issues and their effect on nursing practice and the quality of health care delivery.
• The full scope of practice permitted under Vermont's Nurse Practice Act for RNs.
• Mechanisms for recognizing and expanding nursing practice.
• Opposition to inappropriate personnel substitution for licensed RNs.
• Opposition to legislation which impinges on the ethical practice of nursing as defined by the Code for Nurses.
• Peer assistance programs in Vermont for impaired registered nurses.
• The availability of affordable professional liability insurance for registered and advanced practice registered nurses.
• Reimbursement from all payor sources for services rendered by licensed registered nurses.
• The ability of RNs to achieve equitable compensation and benefits.
   

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ACCESS TO QUALITY HEALTH CARE

VSNA supports:

• A health system that provides equitable, affordable access of all persons to quality acute, preventive, and chronic services.
• Direct access to services provided by professional nurses.
• Access to a full range of qualified health care providers in a wide variety of delivery arrangements.
• Regulations that require health insurance providers to truthfully and adequately educate consumers regarding coverage.
• Regulations to prohibit insurance carriers from limiting information shared between health care provider and client.
• Provision of a continuum of quality community based long term care services to include non-institutional health care options and informal care givers.
• Consumer self-determination and choice.

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HUMAN RIGHTS

VSNA supports:

• Health care as a human right
• The basic right of all people to equity under the law regardless of race, creed, color, gender, age, physical disability, lifestyle or sexual orientation.
• A health care system in which services are provided in a manner that recognizes, values, and accommodates the differences among people.
• The right of each individual to make informed choices about all aspects of his/her health care.
• The right of women to self determination and personal choice including the alternative of abortion.
• Access to a full range of reproductive services for all persons, including adolescents, regardless of economic status.
• Civil and human rights, and access to quality health services for people with HIV or AIDS.
• Access to quality health services for those whose health care needs have been neglected or under served, including, but not limited to persons:
   
  1. in rural areas
  2. denied insurance due to preexisting conditions
  3. deprived economically
  4. without insurance due to employment changes
  5. children and pregnant women.
• Appropriations providing all persons with adequate housing, nutrition, education, and a safe environment.

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HEALTH PROMOTION

VSNA supports:

• Holistic, preventive, acute, and long-term health care services as part of a health system that encourages disease prevention and health promotion for all members of society.
• A safe environment through support of clean air and water, and management of waste including medical, nuclear, and chemical, and pesticidal.
• Prevention and treatment of substance abuse.
• A united effort against the health hazards of tobacco use.
• Screening programs for early detection and treatment of disease.
• Mandated access to school nurses by students in public education and inclusion of school nurse health screenings as part of the initiation of the Individualized Education Plan (IEP).
• Programs for abatement of violence including education, prevention and recovery.
   

WORKPLACE ISSUES

VSNA supports:

• Protection of the health and safety of all RNs in their practice environment.
• Prohibition of gender-based wage discrimination.
• Prohibition of age discrimination in the workplace.
• Provision of adequate treatment and rehabilitation for nurses with illness or injuries sustained on the job.
• The right of RNs to establish professional provider bargaining groups permitting access to health planning group activities in Vermont.
• Inclusion of nurses in all relevant policy planning and implementation.
  Nurses right to organize and bargain collectively.
• Maintaining and strengthening labor, antitrust, and anti-discrimination laws.
• Protection of "whistle blowers".

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