Gov. Perry: Texas is Investing in the Future of Nursing

HOUSTON – Gov. Rick Perry today highlighted Texas’ efforts to combat the state nursing shortage by further investing in nursing education. The governor ceremonially signed House Bill 4471, which improves the Professional Nursing Shortage Reduction Program and provides incentives for nursing programs to enroll and graduate more nurses.

“We need more qualified nurses graduating in Texas, and House Bill 4471 accelerates us toward that goal,” Gov. Perry said. “This bill is an important investment in the future of health care in our state, and I am proud to have worked with our Legislature to address the nursing shortage in Texas.”

HB 4471 improves the Professional Nursing Shortage Reduction Program, which was established in 2001, to help stem the shortage of nurses in Texas, by rewarding high-performing nursing programs with up-front money to hire additional faculty.

HB 4471 also holds nursing programs accountable by creating a new incentive for schools to admit and graduate more nurses. The bill requires a nursing program to apply to the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB) to use grant funds from the Professional Nursing Shortage Reduction Program to enroll or graduate a specific number of students. If the nursing program fails to meet its enrollment or graduation benchmark, THECB may require them to return unearned grant money or withhold future grant awards.

“While the national healthcare debate rages on, I'm proud that Texas is actually doing something to improve health care for Texans through this legislation, which will create more homegrown nursing talent in the state,” Rep. Lois Kolkhorst said. “This bill means more opportunities for quality nursing jobs and a healthier Texas for everyone.”  

Texas nursing schools graduated more than 7,600 new registered nurses in 2008, a 69.7 percent increase over 2001. Despite these gains, Texas nursing schools will not produce a sufficient number of nurses to meet the health care needs of Texans through 2020, according to the Texas Center for Nursing Workforce Studies. Nursing schools often cite the lack of faculty as the biggest barrier to enrolling more students.

Addressing the state’s nursing shortage remains a priority for the governor. The Legislature has provided increased levels of funding over the last three legislative sessions to address the nursing shortage through the Professional Nursing Shortage Reduction Program, Nursing Innovation Grant Program, and the Texas Hospital-Based Nursing Education Partnership Grant Program, a program created at the request of the Governor to promote partnerships between academic institutions and hospitals to build the state’s nursing education capacity. This session, the Legislature appropriated $49.7 million to the Professional Nursing Shortage Reduction Program for 2010-2011, a $35 million increase over 2008-2009.