FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE/March 13, 1998 CONTACT: Sara Foer [202/651-7023]; Joan Meehan [202/651-7020]; http://www.nursingworld.org American Nurses Association Hails Quality Commission's Final ReportCalls for Federal LegislationWASHINGTON, D.C. -- The American Nurses Association (ANA) today applauded the report of the President's Advisory Commission on Consumer Protection and Quality in the Health Care Industry. Culminating a 10-month review of the impact of managed care and how consumers' needs can best be met, the report was presented to President Clinton today in a Rose Garden Ceremony. In late November, the Commission presented Clinton with a proposed "Consumer Bill of Rights and Responsibilities." ANA is calling for federal legislation that will ensure that the Consumer Bill of Rights will be enacted effectively and efficiently, protecting consumers as well as alleviating "the impact and burden of illness, injury, and disability" and improving "the health and functional status of the people of the United States," as outlined in the Commission's proposed Statement of Purpose for the Health Care System. This purpose provides a touchstone for the Commission's work and serves as a guide to improve the quality of health care. "The report of the Commission is an important landmark in our nation's progress toward a health care system of ever-increasing excellence," said ANA President Beverly L. Malone, PhD, RN, FAAN, who serves on the Commission with two other nurses as part of the 34-member panel. "The American Nurses Association welcomes the report and endorses its principal findings regarding the opportunities and needs for improvement of American health care." Many of the report's recommendations are congruent with ANA's and the nursing profession's emphasis on quality care for all consumers. "Nurses have championed patients' rights to know about their health care for years, and have implemented specific strategies to address some of the deficiencies in our health care system in order to meet the needs of today's acutely ill patients," said Malone. ANA commends the Commission for its commitment to processes that have been open, broad-reaching, and participatory and calls upon all individuals and organizations in American health care to collaborate in the pursuit of the purposes and vision embodied in the report. ANA also welcomes and concurs strongly with the Commission's proposed initial set of
National Aims for Improvement:
"Our health care system today is the best in the world, but as the Commission report carefully documents, strong and consistent evidence exists that the quality of our care can be substantially improved," said Malone. "The six proposed National Aims compose a superb, initial agenda for concerted, voluntary, national and regional efforts. We intend to pursue those aims deliberately and in full cooperation with all who share our mission."
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