Budget Is The Focus – Small Victories On The Way

Lawmakers aren’t wasting time in Madison. They’re fully focused on crafting the state’s next budget. Wisconsin Senator Patrick Testin, Chair of the Senate Agriculture and Revenue Committee says although there haven’t been a lot of “ag” items on their agenda, the rural community hasn’t been overlooked.

In a conversation with Pam Jahnke, Testin says he’s still keeping his focus on key components like continuing the Agricultural Road Improvement Program (ARIP), and hopefully with more financial resources. While that programs been immensely popular in rural Wisconsin, there’s another bipartisan piece of work that could mean equally good things in rural communities.

Testin says that the acute shortage of qualified medical providers in rural Wisconsin means people may be waiting months for an appointment with their doctor – or any doctor! The Advanced Practice Registered Nurse Modernization Act (APRN) authorizes qualified registered nurses to practice independently and without the need for a collaborative agreement with a physician – so long as the cases do not fall outside their areas of expertise.

Wisconsin nurses have been advocating for some form of the APRN Modernization Act for more than a decade. Sen. Testin has authored the bill in each of the three most recent legislative sessions, but his first two attempts were vetoed by the governor. Sen. Testin expects the third time to be the charm.

“Despite a couple of setbacks over the past several years, we’ve had very productive conversations with various stakeholders and government officials – including Gov. Tony Evers – and we have a deal in place that when the APRN Modernization Act reaches the governor’s desk, it is supposed to be signed into law,” Sen. Testin said. “There has been a lot of give and take and no one is getting everything they want. That is the true definition of compromise.”

In order to work out an arrangement with the governor, multiple changes were made when drafting the newest version of the legislation. One increases the years of experience a registered nurse must have before they can practice independently. Some of the other modifications are connected to professional title protections, pain management services and malpractice liability insurance minimums.