Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced that $250 million in healthcare reform funds will go to increasing access to primary care providers. This will include $15 million toward the creation of NP-led clinics, as well as $30 million toward nursing education. "These new investments will strengthen our primary care workforce to ensure that more Americans can get the quality care they need to stay healthy," Sebelius said in a statement.
American Academy of Nurse Practitioners director of health policy Jan Towers, NP, said the organization is pleased that the government allocated funds to NP-led clinics. "The fact that they picked the nurse practitioner-led clinics tells us that they're including nurse practitioners in the framework." She said this is just a start, and that they expect more support in the future.
Read a related fact sheet at http://www.healthreform.gov/newsroom/primarycareworkforce.html.
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