1,000 Nurses to March & Rally in Washington Today, Urge Next Step in Health Reform -- Patient Safety Reform

News provided by

National Nurses United

May 12, 2010, 06:00 ET

WASHINGTON, May 12 /PRNewswire/ -- Up to 1,000 registered nurses from Maine to California will march and rally in Washington, DC, today to press the case for moving beyond insurance reform to improving the quality of care in U.S. hospitals and other healthcare settings.

The march and rally culminates a two day event, hosted by the nation's largest nurses' union and professional association, National Nurses United, to press for landmark patient safety legislation now in Congress, including a bill that would establish new national patient safety standards.

March and Rally Details: Wednesday, May 12

March Begins at about Union Station, 10:15 a.m.

March Route:

West on Massachusetts Ave NW

South East on Columbia Monument Drive

South on Delaware to Constitution Ave NE

West on Constitution Ave to Upper Senate Park

Rally Begins after March, approximately 10:45 a.m.

Upper Senate Park

Followed by Legislative Visits, Capitol Hill

In addition to the march and rally, the nurses will meet this morning, at 8 a.m., at the Washington Hilton, International Ballroom, 1919 Connecticut Ave, for final planning for the legislative action.

Speakers on Tuesday will include U.S. Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis and AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka. Legislators scheduled to speak on Wednesday at the rally and conference include U.S. Senators Barbara Boxer (Ca), Al Franken (Mn), and Bernie Sanders (Vt), and U.S. Representatives Judy Chu (Ca), Donna Edwards (Md), Keith Ellison (Mn), Al Green (Tx), Raul Grijalva (Az), Dennis Kucinich (Oh), Barbara Lee (Ca), Jan Schakowsky (Il), Chellie Pingree (Md),  Anthony Weiner (NY), and Lynn Woolsey (Ca).

The event coincides with National Nurses Week which centers around the May 12 anniversary of the birth of Florence Nightingale, often considered the founder of modern nursing.

National Nurses United is the largest union and professional association of RNs in U.S. history with 155,000 members in all U.S. states. It was formed by the December, 2009 unification of the California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee, Massachusetts Nurses Association, and United American Nurses.    

SOURCE National Nurses United