About 25 staffing companies and healthcare companies attended the Tuesday meeting. Many issues were considered and discussed, including how best to enact the bridge legislation. The Coalition is committed toward passing bridge legislation and, in June, hired a lobbyist whose #1 goal is to do just that. We are working on having our amendment introduced in the near term.
The biggest hurdle is that there remains an “immigration hangover” in Congress, which is to say that many Senators / Representatives are loathe to touch any amendment or bill that appears to be immigration related. Fortunately we do have many members in Congress who understand that our issue is truly a healthcare issue and that immigration provides a partial solution to a dire nursing shortage.