H.R. 1907: Nurse Staffing Standards for Patient Safety and Quality Care Act of 2013
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H.R. 1907: Nurse Staffing Standards for Patient Safety and Quality Care Act of 2013
113th Congress · introduced 2013-05-09 · Health · Latest: Referred to the Subcommittee on Health.
federal
Follow this bill, step by step
- Where it came from: introduced 2013-05-09 · official record
- Who proposed it: Rep. Schakowsky, Janice D. [D-IL-9] · what a sponsor is
- What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
- Where it stands now: Referred to the Subcommittee on Health. Not final yet: this can still change. We check for updates every day.
- If it becomes law and spends money: follow the money to money laws, then agencies and contracts and grants.
Official title
Nurse Staffing Standards for Patient Safety and Quality Care Act of 2013
Plain summary
Nurse Staffing Standards for Patient Safety and Quality Care Act of 2013 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require hospitals to implement a staffing plan that includes a minimum direct care registered nurse-to-patient ratio by unit, adjustments above the minimum ratio under appropriate circumstances, and compliance with minimum licensed practical nurse staffing requirements. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to develop a national acuity tool to establish nurse staffing requirements above minimum ratios. Directs the Secretary to adjust Medicare payments to hospitals to cover additional costs incurred in providing services to Medicare beneficiaries that are attributable to compliance with such ratios. Authorizes a nurse to object to, or refuse to participate in, any activity, policy, practice, assignment or task if in good faith it would violate minimum ratios under this Act or if the nurse is not prepared by education, training, or experience to fulfill the assignment without compromising the safety of any patient or jeopardizing the license of the nurse. Prohibits a hospital from: (1) taking specified actions against a nurse based on the nurse's refusal to accept an assignment for such a reason; or (2) discriminating against any patient, employee, or any other individual for good faith complaints or grievances relating to the care, services, or conditions of the hospital or of any affiliated or related facilities. Prohibits actions by hospitals to restrain such rights. Sets forth enforcement provisions. Applies provisions of this Act through federal health programs, including Medicare, Medicaid, and Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) health benefits programs. Includes stipends in the nurse workforce loan repayment and scholarship program. Expands the nurse retention grant program to authorize programs to implement nurse preceptorship and mentorship projects.
Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in House), quoted unchanged (nonpartisan). Read the source.
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What does this mean? (plain words)
Official text
Nurse Staffing Standards for Patient Safety and Quality Care Act of 2013
Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in House)
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How did my representative vote? · This bill's floor votes
Officials and money
Sponsor: Rep. Schakowsky, Janice D. [D-IL-9] · 38 cosponsors
Cost estimate: No cost estimate published yet.
Cosponsors on this site
Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), Gwen Moore (D-WI), Brad Sherman (D-CA), Judy Chu (D-CA), Stephen F. Lynch (D-MA), William R. Keating (D-MA), James P. McGovern (D-MA), Edward J. Markey (D-MA), Joyce Beatty (D-OH), Jared Huffman (D-CA), John Garamendi (D-CA), Steven Horsford (D-NV), Scott H. Peters (D-CA), Julia Brownley (D-CA), Gary C. Peters (D-MI), Mark Takano (D-CA), Katherine M. Clark (D-MA), Ami Bera (D-CA)
Sponsor's campaign money: Rep. Schakowsky, Janice D. [D-IL-9] reported raising $415,385 (2025–2026). Details. Shown for context only; it does not mean any donor supported this bill.
No linked floor roll calls in our collected records yet. This does not mean the bill has never had a vote. Check the official bill history.
Words on this page, explained (2)
- Appropriation
- Money a legislature sets aside by law for a specific purpose. Government agencies may spend public money only as it has been appropriated.
- Authorization
- A law that creates or continues a government program and says what it may do, often with a suggested spending ceiling. An authorization alone does not provide money; a separate appropriation does.
Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.
Sources
- Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in House)
- Congress.gov
- Data: GovInfo BILLSTATUS bulk data (Library of Congress), BILLSTATUS-113hr1907.xml <https://www.govinfo.gov/bulkdata/BILLSTATUS/113/hr>
Record fed-us-cong113-hr1907 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong113 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong113