Montana Pulse - November 2020

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Page 6 Montana Nurses Association Pulse November, December 2020, January 2021 Legislative Panel Review MNA has experienced and witnessed how state and national lawmaking and policy can impact healthcare by the effects it has on nurses, patients, and our communities. We are each tasked with the civic duty to VOTE and cast our ballots, however, it is imperative NOW, more important than ever, to do so for our profession. Issues impacting our nursing profession range from much needed legislation addressing; staffing, accessibility to affordable healthcare, making it a felony to assault of a nurse or healthcare worker while on duty, maintaining our state sovereignty to regulate nurse licensure and the nurse practice act, fund our hospitals, and collaboration and inclusion of the nurses affected by the nurse licensure compact. Political party isn’t relevant. Purpose and support for MNA’s members’ issues are. On October 8, 2020, MNA held our biannual Legislative Panel. In order to address safety it was held virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Our goal was to inform our members with important information regarding these issues when going to the ballot box. We invited EVERY candidate, regardless of Party for the races listed below. If you do not see a candidate listed, then we did not receive a response to our invitation. We want and NEED our lawmakers, more now than ever, engaged with MNA, as the recognized leader and collective voice for nurses across the state of Montana. To the candidates that joined our virtual event, we thank you for your participation and your willingness to answer questions important to our nurses’ profession. Nurses are public servants too and we appreciate their dedication to care for our citizens, especially during this pandemic. * U.S. Legislative Panel for Lawmakers on the National Level: U.S. Senate: • Steve Bullock (candidate) - attended in person • Steve Daines (incumbent) - responded and was unable to attend U.S. House of Representatives • Matt Rosendale (candidate) - attend in person • Kathleen Williams (candidate) - attend in person *SUMMARY OF THE QUESTIONS & ANSWERS WITH US SENATE CANDIDATE STEVE BULLOCK: Q1. Healthcare access and affordability for all, while maintaining essential health benefits and coverage for preexisting conditions remains a priority for MT nurses. Nurses support the ACA knowing it isn’t perfect but want to keep what works and fix what doesn’t. How do you envision your role to advocate at the national level for healthcare access, affordability, and protection of care for preexisting conditions? Join our amazing healthcare team and make a difference! Offering relocation assistance Crossroads Correctional Facility Shelby, Montana Now Hiring: RN’s & LPN’s F/T & PRN New Licensed Graduates Welcome! Competitive Salary and Pay Based on Experience. To learn more, please contact: Valerie Moreland - Medical Recruiter Valerie.Moreland@corecivic.com Apply online at jobs.corecivic.com CoreCivic is a Drug Free Workplace & EOE - M/F/Vets/Disabled. Steve Bullock Answer: Have and will continue to advocate for affordable health care and maintain preexisting condition coverage; goal to negotiate prescription drug prices; recognize need for improvement of the AVA without a complete overhaul as an overturn will cause 90,000 Montanans to lose healthcare coverage Q2. Currently the United States lacks a coordinated state and national public health infrastructure with the capacity to respond to any large-scale infectious disease outbreak or other public health emergency. State and local public health departments have historically been severely underfunded and have been left to coordinate a response without national direction. How will you advocate on a federal level to develop regulations and systems, including adequate PPE supply to help combat or current pandemic situation and prevent future failures to protect healthcare workers and the public from an infectious disease, such COVID-19, or other public health emergency? Steve Bullock Answer: Recognize the lack of federal support for PPE and need national testing and a unifying message; need to address the PPE supply chain and ship it out to facilities that need it; will advocate for a united national response and provide national leadership Q3. Collective bargaining rights. Federal decisions have stripped away collective bargaining rights for public employees all across the US, to weaken the collective voice of workers, professional nurses included, that greatly impact the ability to advocate for safe quality working conditions affecting patients and patient care. How will you ensure collective bargaining rights for the Montana professional nurse to form and/or join a union, are not further weakened? Steve Bullock Answer: As a previous labor lawyer who worked with multiple unions and know the battle; supports the right organize and collectively bargain at both the federal and state levels; organized labor helps all so needs to be easier to organize; will fight “Right to Work”….which really means “right to work for less” all around Q4. Currently 16 states have addressed, on some level, presumptive eligibility for workers compensation insurance for frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. How do you plan to advocate for this MUCH needed protection in MT for our MT frontline healthcare workers? Steve Bullock Answer: This exact issue was a 20 year fight for firefighters to get this passed in Montana; YOU HAVE THE POWER TO FIGHT FLU! The best way to prevent seasonal influenza is to get vaccinated every year. PROTECT YOURSELF AND THOSE AROUND YOU. VACCINATE: - Yourself - Your patients - Your family For more information visit: immunization.mt.gov we have to stop putting your members in danger and they need to be protected; if there is something that can be done on a federal level for this issue, I will support and advocate for this. *SUMMARY OF THE QUESTIONS & ANSWERS WITH US HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVE CANDIDATES MATT ROSENDALE AND KATHLEEN WILLIAMS Q1. Healthcare access and affordability for all, while maintaining essential health benefits and coverage for preexisting conditions remains a priority for MT nurses. Nurses support the ACA knowing it isn’t perfect but want to keep what works and fix what doesn’t. How do you envision your role to advocate at the national level for healthcare access, affordability, and protection of care for preexisting conditions? Matt Rosendale Answer: Preexisting conditions is important to him as he has a sister who had brain cancer and regardless of the ACA, would like to protect this and reduce premiums. Kathleen Williams Answer: Against repealing the ACA because to protect preexisting conditions you need to protect the ACA; can’t repeal ACA and hope to protect preexisting conditions; will advocate for people 55 and older to buy into Medicare Q2. Currently the United States lacks a coordinated state and national public health infrastructure with the capacity to respond to any large-scale infectious disease outbreak or other public health emergency. State and local public health departments have historically been severely underfunded and have been left to coordinate a response without national direction. How will you advocate on a federal level to develop regulations and systems, including adequate PPE supply to help combat or current pandemic situation and prevent future failures to protect healthcare workers and the public from an infectious disease, such COVID-19, or other public health emergency? Matt Rosendale Answer: Need to focus on restoring national levels of PPE and support the voice to address PPE issues; needs to be collaborative and to develop a solution Kathleen Williams Answer: National response was frustrating to me; need more forward thinking and strategic leader in Congress; should not repeal ACA; need to make sure there is access to and enough of the reagent needed COVID-19 testing Q3. Collective bargaining rights. Federal decisions have stripped away collective bargaining rights for public employees all across the US, to weaken the collective voice of workers, professional nurses included, that greatly impact the ability to advocate for safe quality working conditions affecting patients and patient care. How will you ensure collective bargaining rights for the Montana professional nurse to form and/or join a union, are not further weakened? Matt Rosendale Answer: most important to not strip away rights of workers; supports earning full capacity of earnings with certifications; did not specifically state support of collective bargaining Kathleen Williams Answer: Support collective bargaining and middle class with higher pay and better benefits; voted and “Right to Work” (note: law that weakens the collective bargaining rights for nurses); supports safe working conditions for all healthcare workers and need to protect collective bargaining rights for the future * Montana Legislative Panel for Lawmakers on the State Level: Governor & Lt. Governor • Gianforte-declined, not willing to share a time slot with other candidates • Mike Cooney/Casey Schreiner-attended in person • Lyman Bishop/John Nesper-confirmed to attend, but did not show up
November, December 2020, January 2021 Montana Nurses Association Pulse Page 7 Superintendent of Public Schools • Kevin Leatherbarrow- confirmed to attend, but did not show up • Melissa Romano-attended in person • Elsie Arntzen-responded unable to attend Secretary of State • Christi Jacobsen- confirmed to attend, but did not show up • Bryce Bennett-attended in person Attorney General • Raph Graybill-attended in person • Austin Knudsen-no response State Auditor • Troy Downing- confirmed to attend, but did not show up • Shane Morigeau-attended in person • Roger Roots-no response *SUMMARY OF THE QUESTIONS & ANSWERS WITH GUBERNATORIAL CANDIDATE MIKE COONEY/CASEY SCHREINER (only candidate that participated) Q1. Our public health departments and nurses are working diligently during this pandemic to protect our communities. How will you advocate to develop regulations and systems, including our PPE situation, to help prevent an inadequate pandemic response and properly protect healthcare workers and the public from an infectious disease, such COVID-19, or other public health emergency? Cooney/Schreiner answers: At onset of COVID-19, jumped on phone and spent hours trying to find PPE and found MT was competing with other states; way fed government had this set it up was backwards; stockpile better now; bottom line… need to continue this effort; need to protect our local public health departments so they can stay local have tools to do to make the decision they need to make…will stand up against leg that attempts to strip rights away from our public health departments Q2. The late Mary Munger, RN a public health nurse and MNA member until her passing last year, championed the 1960’s legislative bill, titled to this day “The Blue Eyed Nurses Bill” after her beautiful blue eyes, that allows professional nurses to stick together to bargain collectively, can we count on you to vote down any effort to weaken any collective bargaining rights for our Montana nurses? Why or why not? Cooney/Schreiner answers: YES! Support right to collectively bargain and negotiate working conditions; will veto any attempt to strip collective bargaining rights Q3. Currently 16 states have addressed, on some level, presumptive eligibility for workers compensation insurance for frontline healthcare workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. How do you plan to advocate for this MUCH needed protection during the 2021 Legislative session, should a bill be introduced, in MT for our MT frontline healthcare workers? Cooney/Schreiner answers: supports partnership with local health officials; we need healthy workers to help get our economy up and running again and need to protect frontline workers; we would help shepherd a bill on this topic this through and work together with Republicans and Democrats; we showed this with our fire fighter friends last session (NOTE a similar bill was passed in 2019 for fire fighters) *SUMMARY OF THE QUESTIONS & ANSWERS SUPERINTENDENT OF PUBLIC SCHOOLS CANDIDATE MELISSA ROMANO (only candidate that participated) Q1. Protecting public education and access to quality education is an important priority for our communities. What are your thoughts on funding public schools and not allocating public funds to private and/or charter schools and why is this important to you? Romano answers: Want to put the “public” back into the Superintendent of “Public” Schools; advocates for public tax dollars to go to publics schools; public money should not be diverted to fund private schools and taken away from those who need it most Q2. Since last March when COVID-19 sent our kids home from school, their lives have been drastically changed. With the re-opening of schools and our current surge in COVID-19 cases across the state how will you ensure all public schools have the supplies, tools, and staff they need to keep kids and school staff safe? Romano answers: Safety is top priority; schools need to have all the available resources for safety and for our new way of learning; will be a leader and source of support of all local schools districts so they can stay safe obtain resources they need *SUMMARY OF THE QUESTIONS & ANSWERS WITH SECRETARY OF STATE BRYCE BENNETT (only candidate that participated) Q1. If elected, how will you ensure continuing voting access, either by mail or in person, for all Montanan’s? Bennett answers: Supports a bi-partisan approach; will push back on any voter oppression; supports ability to vote by mail Q2. Voting rights are under attack nationwide, including in Montana, however on September 25, 2020 the court permanently struck down a Montana law that restricted voting rights of Native Americans. The case of Western Native Voice v. Stapleton, challenged a law that imposed sever restrictions on ballot collection efforts that are critical to Native American voters living on rural reservations. How will you protect ballot collection efforts in the future for all rural communities? Bennett answers: Voted against this bill because it was voter suppression and make it hard for certain Montanans to cast a ballot; restricted voting rights and does not support this; proud to push back and support the ability for voting access for Native Americans; this is neighbors helping neighbors and will make sure every vote is counted *SUMMARY OF THE QUESTIONS & ANSWERS WITH ATTORNEY GENERAL CANDIDATE RAPH GRAYBILL (only candidate that participated) Q1. Over the past 3 leg sessions, the MNA has spearheaded a violence against nurses and healthcare workers campaign called “YNWCB.” Although we have yet to get felony Legislation passed or any increased penalty, can you provide suggestions for nurses who are assaulted at work, to advocate for an assault charge with our city and county attorneys? Graybill answers: This is a big priority for me; assault against frontline healthcare workers is an egregious crime; the atty general can supervise the county attorney and makes sure they take these cases seriously Q2. The late Mary Munger, RN a public health nurse and MNA member until her passing last year, championed the 1960’s legislative bill, titled to this day “The Blue Eyed Nurses Bill” after her beautiful blue eyes, that allows professional nurses to stick together to bargain collectively. What role do you see the Attorney General playing in protecting collective bargaining rights for Montanans? Graybill answers: Supports protections of collective bargaining rights to provide leadership and advocacy; understands there is a war against the right to collective bargaining in the court system….using the courts to attack these rights; worked with Gov. Bullock and went to supreme court to work to protect these rights; will run an office that provides real leadership and supports workers. *SUMMARY OF THE QUESTIONS & ANSWERS WITH MONTANA STATE AUDITOR SHANE MORIGEAU (only candidate that participated) Q1. What ideas do you have for increasing access to affordable health insurance for all Montanan’s? Morigeau answers: Need to educate and inform all Montanans on health insurance rights are and what fraud looks like; want to work with hospitals and all players for need transparency in healthcare costs and protect from fraud with insurance companies and securities. Q2. With the high cost of prescription drugs impacting many Montana families, what ideas do you have regarding affordability of prescription drugs in our state? Morigeau answers: We need elected officials willing to work together to combat rising cost of prescription drugs; need to stop price fixing; need transparency in these drug costs so people know what they are getting and they need access to the drugs they need
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Montana Pulse - November 2020

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