Can someone please explain this to me? As a long-time resident of Page County, I am very concerned that cuts to healthcare programs will impair medical services here and hurt residents pursuing careers in nursing.
Nurses are essential to healthcare in Page County, but recent changes to law — some finalized, some proposed — are stumbling blocks for nursing. From what I see, they’ll impair healthcare for us in Page County and limit good jobs for our young people.
Nurses are essential to our healthcare system. Case in point: A registered nurse at Page Memorial recently wrote to the editor of the Shen-Valley Times, explaining just some of the many ways she and other nurses support local patients and families. As she put it, nurses are the “backbone of patient care.” Meanwhile, Page Memorial and other rural hospitals struggle with workforce shortages, plus recent cutbacks in funding Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act.
So why throw two stumbling blocks in front of the nursing profession?
First, this summer, several federal programs that support nurses and their patients were cut. Funding for nursing workforce development and education was cut, and standards for care at nursing homes were lifted.
Second, are proposed, new federal limits on student loans. These can only make it more difficult to pursue careers in nursing, physical therapy, and occupational therapy. The new rules would reclassify educational degrees in all those occupations as NOT “professional,” and then limit loans for those “nonprofessional” students. This likely means fewer people becoming nurses or therapists and less help for anyone needing their services.
I hope these changes don’t prevent students at the [Page] County Technical Center from pursuing nursing and therapy careers. After all, don’t we want to encourage young, capable people to stay here, with good jobs that serve our community?
Unless I’m missing something, the bottom line is these stumbling blocks will hurt local healthcare and limit opportunities for residents pursuing careers in healthcare.
So back to the beginning: Can someone please explain why it makes sense to undercut our nurses, our hospitals, and our healthcare?
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Well, in the world where everyone thinks the government is their parent, it doesn’t make sense. In the sane world
I live in, you’re asking the wrong questions. You should be asking why Obama codified in a law that the insurance companies and hospital groups can gouge their customers and then demand subsidies that the tax payer is responsible for. As for school loans, again ask Obama why he allowed literally anybody to get a guaranteed education loan from the government to pay colleges which have bloated administrative staffs and nonsensical departments like diversity offices and then when those loans can’t be paid off, allow them to be immune to bankruptcy.
The writer is talking about NEW federal guidelines for student loans and declassifying certain healthcare professions as non-professional and thus ineligible for student loan assistance. No one is talking about Obama! Obama may have advocated for some changes that were not helpful but does this mean Americans should not speak out about additional changes that are not good? Two wrongs never make a right.
I see ODS is still rampant amongst Page County residents. Bring on Grey Poupon with a tan suit.
Instead of absurd comments Richard, tell where I’m wrong. You libs refuse to acknowledge anything terrible that a Dem has ever done. It’s such bizarre behavior.
I agree that comments about ‘derangement syndromes’ are unhelpful. However, you do fixate upon establishing blame rather than solutions. You also place that blame solely on one President when, in fact, this problem goes back to the 1970’s.That is also unhelpful. The plain fact is that our hospital and most health care in Page would not exist without a complex web of federal programs. The OP asks about present day changes to one strand of that web. So, back to you: what do you think about federal loan programs helping American nurses improve their skills. They become nurse practitioners or nurse anesthesiologists, critical to care in rural areas. Do you want to eliminate these loans and other federal support for health care in our county?
“You libs refuse to acknowledge anything terrible that a Dem has ever done. It’s such bizarre behavior.” Project much?
Maybe you can offer explanations for the 2 questions asked. So far, ypu’ve only changed the subject.
And if you do have explanations, please clarify whether and why you think that encouraging young local people to qualify as trained nurses and therapists is bad for County residents.
Government subsidies are very similar to government control of the food supply as was, and maybe still is, in Vietnam after April 1975.
It’s tragic for the healthcare argument against Trump, but I just noticed that my health insurance premium for 2026, has decreased by $11.20/month.
Must be nice. For us, Medicare went up almost 10% and our supplemental plan jumped 18 percent.
George Damsons. I’m 71 and on Medicare. I think maybe rates tee off on individual health conditions?