Advocacy & Engagement 

102 Representatives Support FY 2027 Funding for Title VIII in House Dear Colleague Letter
On March 27, a record one hundred and two Representatives signed onto the bipartisan House of Representatives Dear Colleague letter, requesting $610 million for Title VIII Nursing Workforce Development Programs in FY 2027.

NCC Thanks Senator Merkley and Congresswoman Underwood for introducing the Future Advancement of Academic Nursing (FAAN) Act
On March 23, fifty-eight members of the Nursing Community Coalition (NCC) sent a letter thanking Senate Nursing Caucus Co-Chair, Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR), and House Nursing Caucus Vice Co-Chair and nurse, Congresswoman Lauren Underwood (D-IL-14), for reintroducing the FAAN Act (H.R.6607/S.3435). This bill would help enhance enrollment and recruitment of nursing students, hire and retain faculty, and support the modernization of nursing education infrastructure.

NCC Thanks Senator Durbin and Congresswoman Bonamici for Introducing the Nurse Faculty Shortage Reduction Act
On March 17, fifty-five members of the Nursing Community Coalition (NCC) sent a letter thanking Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR-01), along with other supporters, for introducing the Nurse Faculty Shortage Reduction Act (S.3707/H.R.7279) and urging its inclusion in any health care or workforce package. This bipartisan, bicameral legislation would provide much needed grant funding to close the pay gap between faculty and clinical nurses.

NCC Sends Comments to the Department of Education Supporting Nursing as a Professional Degree 
On March 2, all sixty-five members of the Nursing Community Coalition (NCC) signed onto written comments to the Department of Education (ED). The comments strongly requested that ED explicitly include post-baccalaureate nursing programs (MSN, DNP, PhD) in its definition of “professional degree” programs as it implements the Public Law 119-21 – One Big Beautiful Bill Act (H.R.1).

Nursing and Friends Send Comments in Response to the Department of Education’s Proposed Rule
On March 2, two hundred and seventy-seven national and state-level organizations signed onto written comments to the Department of Education urging them to amend their proposed rule and include post-baccalaureate nursing degrees (MSN, DNP, PhD) explicitly in the list of “professional” degrees.