Advocacy and policy in action: Developing a financial and healthcare safety net for nurses

The COVID-19 pandemic has opened a dialogue regarding advocacy and policy changes that need to occur at the federal, state, and local levels to ensure provisions for the financial and healthcare well-being of nurses. Often nurses struggle as the "breadwinners" in their families caring for multiple generations, thus leading them to live paycheck to paycheck.

A review of current and proposed policy changes. The pandemic demonstrated clearly through governmental executive orders that laws and regulations could be changed more rapidly than the traditional routes, illustrating an ability to enact change in nursing practice. At the federal level, provisions are not made to ensure that nurses who risk their lives during pandemic times are adequately compensated monetarily and through extended healthcare benefits, often provided for police, fire, and other emergency personnel.

Suggestions for new policy and advocacy agendas are proposed based on the gap in coverage noted during and after this pandemic.

COVID-19 has brought to the forefront gaps in the financial and healthcare safety nets for nurses in the United States. Opportunities exist to inform via advocacy and policy reform at the federal, state, and local governmental agencies regarding the need for extended financial and healthcare provisions for nurses.