Email from National Association of School Nurses Welcome to Policy Pulse, NASN’s new monthly advocacy-focused newsletter. Each edition will keep you informed on the latest policy developments impacting school nursing, education, and student health. From legislative updates to calls for action, Policy Pulse is your go-to resource for staying engaged and empowered as a school nurse advocate. Proposed Elimination of Ed Dept. Puts Student Support Services at Risk The Trump Administration is moving forward with its campaign pledge to dismantle the Department of Education. President Trump recently announced an Executive Order to abolish the Department and has directed Secretary Linda McMahon to take all possible steps toward its elimination. In response, NASN released a statement expressing deep concern about the potential impact this action could have on students. The announcement follows a Department of Education Reduction in Force (RIF) that would eliminate nearly 50 percent of its workforce—reducing the number of employees from 4,133 to approximately 2,183 and resulting in the termination of around 1,300 staff members. While fully dissolving the Department of Education would require an act of Congress—specifically, 60 votes in the Senate—such a move is considered unlikely given the current political makeup of the chamber. Nevertheless, President Trump and Secretary McMahon have publicly discussed plans to shift various departmental responsibilities to other federal agencies. These include transferring civil rights enforcement to the Department of Justice, services for students with disabilities to the Department of Health and Human Services, vocational education programs to the Department of Labor, and student loan services to the Small Business Administration. NASN will continue to monitor developments closely and advocate for policies that protect the health and educational needs of all students. NASN Board of Directors Take to the Hill In conjunction with NASN’s Winter Board Meeting, NASN’s Board of Directors took to the Hill to meet with their Congressional delegation. They met with their Senators and representatives to discuss the critical role that school nurses play in the health and well being of students that lead to their academic success. School nurses are the front line healthcare professionals addressing both physical and mental health that allow students to be healthy, safe, and ready to learn. NASN’s legislative “Asks” were: Encourage Members of Congress to Oppose Cuts to Medicaid Funding: Medicaid funding is essential for school-based health services. Medicaid is also a key source of funding for school-based health care provided to all eligible students across the country. Ask Members of Congress to Support IDEA Funding: According to the U.S. Department of Education, the number of children with disabilities served under IDEA continues to grow, reaching an estimated 7.94 million children with disabilities during the 2024-2025 school year. Ask Members of Congress to Support Increased Funding for the Title VIII Nursing Workforce Development Programs: The Title VIII Programs are the largest dedicated federal funding for nurses. Watch and Listen NASN Resources In the first episode of our monthly podcast Beyond Bandaids, NASN CEO Terri Hinkley, EdD, MBA, BScN, RN, CAE, sits down with Piper Largent, NASN's Director of Government Affairs, and Jim Twaddell, Senior Policy Advisor at Venable LLP, to discuss NASN's 2025 advocacy priorities and how school nurses can navigate policy changes to make a lasting impact. Check us out on YouTube and Spotify and subscribe so you don't miss an episode!   NASN Issues Lillian Wald Awards NASN awarded Congressman Henry C. “Hank” Johnson, Jr., of Georgia’s Fourth Congressional District, and Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts as the winners of the Lillian Wald Legislator/Public Policy Award for their work on the Gun Violence Prevention and Community Safety Act. Warren was unable to attend in person to receive her award. The award recognizes a legislator or public policy official who has supported or uniquely contributed to NASN, school nursing, or school health services. New Advocacy Priorities Released NASN unveiled our new Advocacy Priorities, which provide a roadmap for the advocacy work that NASN engages in every day. NASN has and will continue to advocate for a school nurse all day, every day in schools, so that children can thrive personally and academically. Children deserve to have their healthcare needs met in school. Over 40 percent of school children manage a chronic condition or mental health issue. Sadly, one-third of schools do not have a registered nurse on-site.  Our advocacy priorities focus on ensuring that all schools have full-time registered nurses, sustainable funding for school health services, highlighting the value of school nurses, and policies that promote the well-being of students and school communities. Student Well-Being School Nursing Workforce Securing Sustainable Funding Evidence of School Nursing Value   In August 2024, the National Association of School Nurses (NASN) conducted a poll through Morning Consult to understand the adult U.S. population’s understanding and view of school nurses. The results are an important snapshot of the awareness of and value the public places on school nurses, the priority they place on school nurses, and their support for funding of school nurses. NASN believes understanding public sentiment is vital to ensuring public investment and public policies reflect public priorities. Key Takeaways Adults hold a highly favorable view of school nurses and the roles they perform. Nurses are widely seen as playing essential roles in schools and in the lives of children. There is strong support for providing school nurses to every school in the country and for increasing the funding to do so. Support for school nurse funding is a non-partisan issue that would affect who voters back in an election. How Does the Public View School Nurses? Adults hold an overwhelmingly positive view of school nurses and their roles. The poll indicates that 87% of adults have a favorable opinion of school nurses, making them the highest-rated group among school staff, surpassing teachers (85%) and principals (78%). After being informed of the specific responsibilities of school nurses, favorability increases further to 91%.   Medicaid The House of Representatives passed a Budget Resolution that called for $880 billion in cuts to Medicaid that will significantly affect Medicaid in Schools. Over 40 percent of children are recipients of Medicaid or CHIP. Medicaid is the fourth largest federal line item to schools. Medicaid supports critical health services in the school setting, helping pay for $7.5 billion annually. Medicaid has permitted payment to schools for certain medically necessary services provided to children under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) through an individualized education program (IEP). NASN has always supported Medicaid in schools as a way for students to receive needed health services and pay for the school nursing salaries and other specialized instructional support services. For this reason and many others, NASN signed onto this letter with 65 other organizations opposing these draconian cuts to Medicaid that will harm children, families, and schools. The Healthy Schools Campaign conducted a survey to assess How Medicaid Cuts Will Harm Students & Schools in partnership with AASA, The School Superintendents Association; Association of School Business Officials International (ASBO); National Alliance for Medicaid in Education (NAME); and Council of Administrators of Special Education (CASE) to determine the effect that significant cuts to Medicaid will have. This survey received responses from over 1,400 school district leaders across all 50 states and DC. Two key findings were: 86% of respondents said their district uses Medicaid funds to support salaries for school health staff and personnel such as school nurses, school psychologists, occupational and physical therapists, and speech-language pathologists. 45% of respondents are from rural school districts, where more children are covered by Medicaid and schools play an outsize role in providing healthcare. Feedback requested: NASN is actively collecting more stories about how Medicaid affects students or how Medicaid cuts would affect your school and/or district. Submit your story today. Stories from the Field "As the district nurse leading a district of approximately 10,000 students where 59% are economically disadvantaged and 17.5% are English Learners having Medicaid-covered services available to our students is crucial. We currently have a partnership with a clinical practice that houses a school-based clinic on our premises. This clinic, although available to all of our students and their families, primarily serves our families who are currently on Medicaid-funded programs or have no medical insurance at all. Many of the area's pediatric/family practices limit their number of Medicaid-funded patients due to the low reimbursement." -- District Nurse "I have two granddaughters who have totally different diagnoses. Both are in elementary school in different districts in Ark. One has William Syndrome and she receives OT, PT, Speech, Mental Health Cognitive services. While the other granddaughter has Muscular Dystrophy and Spinal Muscular Atrophy. She also receives the above services. While both do obtain this at school, it has made a major impact on their learning and behavior. Cutting money that will be needed to provide services will cause problems and delays for my grandchildren." -- School nurse in Arkansas   NEW MEXICO – HB 195 – An act relating to school personnel; providing a tiered salary system for school nurses; providing minimum salaries at the same rate as teachers; creating a program unit for national board certification of certain registered nurses. Passed the House of Representatives. ARKANSAS – HB 1242 – An act concerning public school nurses; to amend the mechanism by which school nurses are compensated; and for other purposes. Introduced. IOWA – HSB 10 – An Act relating to persons who may provide health services to students enrolled in a school district (athletic trainers). Introduced. MAINE – LD 217 – An Act to Require Schools to Provide Access to Free Condoms for Students in Grades 9 to 12 in the School Nurse's Office - Introduced. SOUTH CAROLINA – H 4166 – A Bill To Amend The South Carolina Code Of Laws By Adding Section 59-63-92 So As To Provide A Safe, Effective, And Timely Option For Students To Prevent Unintended Pregnancies By Ensuring That All Public Middle And High School Students In This State Have Access To Levonorgestrel/Plan B, An Emergency Contraceptive, Through The School Nurse Or, In The Absence Of A School Nurse, Another Designated Administrator. Introduced. View as Webpage Did you enjoy this email? National Association of School Nurses | 1100 Wayne Avenue Suite 925 | Silver Spring, MD 20910 US Unsubscribe | Update Profile | Constant Contact Data Notice