Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson represents Texas’ 30th Congressional District in the United States House of Representatives. Johnson received a bachelor of science in nursing from Texas Christian University and later practiced psychiatry and psychotherapy. Since her election to Congress in 1992, she has promoted nursing and healthcare access for communities. Her legislative priorities have been to provide the most advanced, efficient, and affordable health services (United States Congress, 2021a). Johnson supported President Obama’s Affordable Care Act of 2008, which provides care and support to Americans. Johnson introduced the National Nurse Act of 2019, which aims to strengthen the relationship between healthcare stakeholders and encourage nurse volunteerism. She sponsored the Partial Hospitalization Stabilization and Integrity Act of 2011, which established quality service criteria to measure service providers’ performance. She also endorsed the Protecting Pre-Existing Conditions and Marking Health Care More Affordable Act of 2019 (United States Congress, 2019). The bill sought to improve affordability and increase access to health insurance by Americans.
The enactment of the Protecting Patient Access to Emergency Medications Act of 2017 enlisted the advocacy efforts of the Emergency Nurses Association. The legislation allows emergency medical service (EMS) agencies to use preapproved instructions to deliver care during crises. It also enables EMS professionals to administer controlled substances in the absence of a medical director, provided it is authorized under the state’s law. The law allows EMS providers to have a single DEA registration, regardless of the number of places they operate in, so long as certain conditions are met. However, it empowers DEA to reject inconsistent records from emergency care professionals (United States Congress, 2021b). The Emergency Nurses Association should advocate for harmonizing accompanying laws across the United States to enhance compliance and monitoring of defined standing orders.
References
United States Congress. (2019). U.S. Representative Eddie Bernice Johnson: Representing the 30th District of Texas. Web.
United States Congress. (2021a). Representative Eddie Bernice Johnson. Web.
United States Congress. (2021b). H.R.304 – Protecting Patient Access to Emergency Medications Act of 2017. Web.