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H.R. 1602: Nurse Staffing Standards for Patient Safety and Quality Care Act of 2015

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H.R. 1602: Nurse Staffing Standards for Patient Safety and Quality Care Act of 2015

114th Congress · introduced 2015-03-25 · Health · Latest: Referred to the Subcommittee on Health.

federal

Follow this bill, step by step

  1. Where it came from: introduced 2015-03-25 · official record
  2. Who proposed it: Rep. Schakowsky, Janice D. [D-IL-9] · what a sponsor is
  3. What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
  4. Where it stands now: Referred to the Subcommittee on Health. Not final yet: this can still change. We check for updates every day.
  5. If it becomes law and spends money: follow the money to money laws, then agencies and contracts and grants.

What does this mean?

Official title

Nurse Staffing Standards for Patient Safety and Quality Care Act of 2015

Plain summary

Nurse Staffing Standards for Patient Safety and Quality Care Act of 2015 Amends the Public Health Service Act to require hospitals to implement and submit to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) a staffing plan that complies with specified minimum nurse-to-patient ratios by unit. Requires HHS to develop a transparent method for establishing nurse staffing requirements above minimum ratios. Directs HHS 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. Allows a nurse to object to, or refuse to participate in, any assignment if it would violate minimum ratios or if the nurse is not prepared by education or experience to fulfill the assignment without compromising the safety of a patient or jeopardizing the nurse's license. 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 individual for good faith complaints relating to the care, services, or conditions of the hospital or of any related facilities. Adds stipends to 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.

What a vote does

A “Yea” vote

If it passes both chambers and is signed, it becomes law.

A “Nay” vote

If it is not passed, current law stays as it is.

PSI Sci description of the legislative step (not an opinion).

What does this mean? (plain words)

Official text

Nurse Staffing Standards for Patient Safety and Quality Care Act of 2015

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in House)

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The strongest published arguments

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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] · 42 cosponsors

Cost estimate: No cost estimate published yet.

Cosponsors on this site

Mark Takano (D-CA), Brad Sherman (D-CA), Stephen F. Lynch (D-MA), William R. Keating (D-MA), Katherine M. Clark (D-MA), Norma J. Torres (D-CA), Joyce Beatty (D-OH), Scott H. Peters (D-CA), John Garamendi (D-CA), Yvette D. Clarke (D-NY), Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), Judy Chu (D-CA), Ami Bera (D-CA), Julia Brownley (D-CA), James P. McGovern (D-MA), Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), Gwen Moore (D-WI), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Grace Meng (D-NY), Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR)

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 (1)
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

Record fed-us-cong114-hr1602 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong114 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong114