Florida Governor Signs Legislation to Ease Regulations on Out-of-State Nurses, Repay Some Student Loans

Gov. Jeb Bush (R) on May 28 signed legislation (HB 519) aimed at recruiting nurses to fill the state's 9,000 nursing vacancies, the AP/Tallahassee Democrat reports. Under the legislation, nurses relocating to Florida from other states and territories, including Puerto Rico, that have comparable training standards will be permitted to obtain a Florida nursing license after completing a background check. Eligible nurses would need to have a minimum of three years experience. The legislation also allows the Florida Department of Health to repay nursing students' loans -- up to $4,000 per year for up to four years -- for those who did not receive other financial aid and work in Florida health care facilities. In addition, the law allocates $500,000 in grants for middle and high schools to establish programs to promote students' interest in health care professions. Bush also signed a bill (SB 1808) that provides funding for the Florida Center for Nursing to establish a "state strategy to deal with the nursing shortage." Florida needs 34,000 new nurses by 2006 to keep pace with the growing health care demands of an aging population (Chachere, AP/Tallahassee Democrat, 5/29).