LANSING, Mich. (WXYZ) — The Michigan State House is handing hospitals a win, voting to join the National Nurse Licensure Compact. The bill, which passed 57-52, would let nurses in one state work in any other state in the compact, without having to achieve licensure in that state.
Watch Keenan's update from our 6 a.m. show
More than 40 states currently participate in the compact. And this morning, I've been going through some recent studies on the severity of the nursing shortage.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor statistics projects the registered nursing workforce will climb to more than 177,000 through 2032. We will need 193,00 RNs — that's a shortage of more than 15,000.
And in 2022, the health resources and services administration projected Michigan would have 15 percent shortfall of nurses by 2035.
This week, Henry Ford Rochester Hospital nurses are on strike, demanding better nurse-to-patient ratios be included in their contract. We heard their concerns firsthand.
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This bill isn't a done deal yet. Legislation to allow the state's participation in the compact has been introduced five times since 2017. Governor Gretchen Whitmer vetoed a similar bill in 2020, arguing that joining the compact violates Michigan's constitution by ceding state regulatory authority to other states.
