ANA Hill Day 2025: Nurses take key issues to Capitol Hill

Jun 26th 2025

More than 500 nurses from 47 states, the District of Columbia, Guam, and the U. S. Virgin Islands brought key issues to federal policymakers on June 26 for the American Nurses Association’s (ANA) Hill Day.

This high-impact advocacy effort represents more than a moment but a movement. Nurses leveraged their collective voice to ensure that policymakers hear The Power of Nurses™ loud and clear. The group of nurses, nursing students, and nurse leaders shared information, insights, and personal experiences to educate lawmakers about priority legislative issues including:

Preserving funding for Medicaid
Reauthorizing Title VIII Nursing Workforce Programs
Protecting nurses from workplace violence
Improving patients' access to care

"This is our day to be seen and heard—and welcomed into the halls and offices of Congress—as the experts we are on nursing practice, education, and regulation, and on matters of importance to our nation's health," said ANA President Jennifer Mensik Kennedy, PhD, MBA, RN, NEA-BC, FAAN, in her welcome message.

At a time when norms have been shattered and there is considerable flux about policies, programs, and priorities, she emphasized "we are engaging in a fundamental act of democracy that is still valued and important."

The passionate and energized group of nurses met with 244 House of Representatives offices and 92 Senate offices.

ANA Board of Directors member Khaliah Fisher-Grace, PhD, RN, CPHQ, PCCN-K, spoke about the significance of Hill Day. "It's important so that we can ensure the voice of nursing is heard and that we're speaking collectively around issues that really matter and that will cover a broad range of the population."

Khaliah Fisher-Grace

Before nurses left for their Hill Day visits, they welcomed Senator Jeff Merkley of Oregon, who had a "fireside chat" with Mensik Kennedy. Merkley serves as a co-chair of the Congressional Nursing Caucus, a bipartisan group of legislators dedicated to advancing policies that support the nation's more than 5 million RNs.

Merkley urged nurses to share their personal experiences during their visits. "Stories from your direct experience will make such a difference in connecting with legislators themselves," he said. "You have so many powerful stories about assisting people."

Jennifer Mensik Kennedy & Sen. Jeff Merkley

Medicaid matters and more

The Senate is about to debate and vote on a budget reconciliation bill that could cut $800 billion from Medicaid over the next 10 years, resulting in at least 7.8 million people losing coverage.

Preserving funding for Medicaid is a key issue cited by Virginia Nurses Association member Eric Mutchie, RN, MHA, CPHQ, NE-BC, FACHE. "Medicaid funding is at the top of my personal list," he said. "The potential impact on access in our more rural communities, and on the hospitals in those areas is quite meaningful."

Eric Mutchie

Attendees also advocated for the Improving Care and Access to Nurses (ICAN) Act (H. 1317/S. 575), which would remove arbitrary, outdated barriers in the Medicare and Medicaid programs that currently prevent APRNs from practicing to the full extent of their education and clinical training.

As a nurse practitioner, Jacquelyn Owens, DNP, FNP-BC, described why passage of the ICAN Act matters to her. "It's huge because it holds back our ability to process things for our patients, especially those who are in hospice," she said. "I will have a patient who's been with me for years. And then when it's time to write a hospice order, I can't do it," she said. "I have to wait for the physician, who may not be there right away, and may not know the patient." Owens is a New Jersey State Nurses Association member.

Jacquelyn Owens

ICAN has been endorsed by 260 organizations across the political spectrum.

A poignant moment during the Hill Day briefing occurred when Simit Pandya, ANA's director of congressional and grass roots advocacy, asked audience members to stand if they’d been personally impacted by workplace violence. The majority of attendees stood, reflecting the reality that healthcare workers are at greater risk of workplace violence than prison guards or police officers and that an estimated one in four nurses have been assaulted on the job.

In their Hill Day visits nurses advocated for support of the Workplace Violence Prevention for Health Care and Social Service Workers Act, H.R. 2531/S. 1232, which would require the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to finalize and enforce a final rule requiring healthcare employers to establish workplace violence prevention standards. This bill would also establish whistleblower protections for nurses who report violent incidents.

Minu Shibu, a nurse practitioner from Virginia, supports this legislation because it would lead to standardized protocols for dealing with workplace violence.

Minu Shibu

Attendees also were seeking $530 million+ in funding for the Title VIII Nursing Workforce Development Programs, and passage of Title VIII Nursing Workforce Reauthorization Act of 2025 (H.R. 3593/S. 1874), which would reauthorize these programs through Fiscal Year 2030. In Fiscal Year 2024 the programs supported more than 24,000 nurses, nursing students, and grantees.

As an APRN, Shibu also underscored why nursing workforce development funding matters. "It's so important to have fellowships, and it's difficult to find one. For patient outcomes, you need to have good, advanced training for your nurse practitioners," she said.

The 500 nurses carried stethoscopes to leave behind with lawmakers as reminders of The Power of Nurses—the nation's most trusted professionals and the heartbeat of healthcare.

What's next

The 2025 ANA Membership Assembly, a meeting of the association's governing and official voting body, begins Friday, June 27 to consider a range of key nursing issues, conduct the business of the association, and elect national leaders.

Stay up to date and join the conversation!

For news on ANA Membership Assembly and related activities, follow ANA on Facebook, Instagram, and X with #ANAHillDay, #NursesVote and #ThePowerofNurses.