All but one of Maryland’s twenty-four counties are classified as a Health Professional Shortage Area for primary care services and mental health services. In many of Maryland’s rural and underserved areas, the availability of primary care and mental health professionals is dire. By allowing Advanced Practice Registered Nurses from across the country to practice in Maryland, we can help lower the critical healthcare labor gap.
Accessible behavioral and mental health services are important to a healthy Maryland. The APRN Compact would allow more behavioral health service professionals to practice in our state and reduce the time it takes to get help when it's needed most.
Community and reproductive health organizations face tighter budgets and rising costs year after year. The APRN Compact will help alleviate regulatory expenses for these critical organizations that employ Advanced Practice Registered Nurses with multiple licenses.
The recent global pandemic and ever-increasing frequency of natural disasters have made clear that the century-old nursing licensure is not up to the task of providing emergency staffing at a great time of need. The APRN Compact will open Maryland to a national network of highly trained medical professionals ready to help residents at a moment's notice.
There are over 1 million military spouses throughout the United States, and nearly 20% of working military spouses are in health-related services, including Advanced Practice Registered Nurses. On average, Military families move every 2-3 years, and many of them move to Maryland at some point due to our large DOD footprint. The APRN Compact will replace a restrictive century-old licensure model with a modern and flexible model and ensure these hard-working military spouses are able to work on day one and provide for their families.
Wait times in hospitals, community health clinics, and doctor's offices are increasing every year throughout the country and right here in Maryland. The APRN Compact would bring nurses to Maryland who are specialists in different forms of care, expanding our healthcare bandwidth to allow for the best possible care for Maryland residents.
The APRN Compact enables Advanced Practice Registered Nurses to practice in person or provide telehealth services to patients located across the country seamlessly and efficiently. In addition, patients who seek critical healthcare when outside the state of Maryland can do so via telehealth, maintaining access to the providers they trust for their care.
Modern Healthcare delivery requires that safe and quality care provided by Advanced Practice Registered Nurses be dynamic and fluid. The current century-old nursing licensure model does not meet the needs of Modern healthcare. The APRN Compact will help bring Maryland into the 21st century when it comes to recruiting and maintaining the very best healthcare professionals.
Marylanders for Healthcare Workforce Access is a coalition of healthcare leaders, organizations, providers, and patients who support Maryland joining the APRN Compact which will allow Advanced Practice Registered Nurses from across the country to practice in Maryland.
