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From 1951 to 1972, Julia Charlotte Thompson was director of the American Nurses Association's (ANA) Washington, DC office and served as the association's first full-time lobbyist. As a lobbyist, she worked to improve Social Security benefits for the disabled and retired, and for the passage of Medicare legislation. In 1965, she traveled with President Lyndon Johnson to Independence, Missouri, for the signing of the Medicare bill. She was successful in convincing Congress to grant registered nurses in the military the ranks commensurate with their responsibili- ties. In 1956, her efforts to gain federal support for nursing education were rewarded with the passage of the first nurse traineeship program. She was also instrumental in securing passage of the Nurse Training Acts of 1964 and 1971. Thompson retired in 1972, but continued to serve ANA as a consultant while completing her book, The ANA in Washington, a summary of the federal legislative activities of ANA during her directorship. |
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