AAOHN COMMENDS SENATE FOR SUPPORTING NIOSH
WHAT: Last week, the Senate Appropriations Committee passed (approved) the Fiscal Year 2005 funding bill for the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services and Education. The Committee Report (108-345) accompanying this legislation includes language (a directive) that could effectively block the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) from altering the current procedures or organizational structure of NIOSH.
This legislative language counters the CDC's proposed reorganization plan, announced May 13, 2004, under which NIOSH would become part of the new Coordinating Center for Environmental Health, Injury Prevention and Occupational Health (EIO). The director of NIOSH would report to the new EIO center director instead of the director of the CDC.
BACKGROUND: From the beginning, AAOHN, along with several other leading stakeholder groups, has expressed concerns about the CDC reorganization. These organizations believe that the Futures Initiative currently being implemented by the CDC will result in a lack of visibility for NIOSH and a lower priority for occupational safety and health.
AAOHN ACTIONS: AAOHN commends Subcommittee Chairman Arlen Specter (R-PA) and his colleagues on the Senate Appropriations Committee for approving language that could preserve the role of NIOSH in light of the CDC reorganization. The association urges the House of Representatives to adopt the Senate language in the final version of the FY05 appropriations bill.
AAOHN will continue to provide support for NIOSH by working with key Members of Congress to ensure that adequate resources are committed to worker health and safety.
"We are very pleased that the Senate Committee demonstrated they recognize that the CDC reorganization's impact on NIOSH could significantly weaken and diminish the importance of occupational health and safety," says AAOHN president Susan Randolph, MSN, RN, COHN-S, FAAOHN. "NIOSH was created as the federal agency responsible for conducting research and making recommendations for the prevention of work-related injury and illness. NIOSH’s role should not be diminished by its placement as part of a CDC sub-group."
To view a full excerpt of the Senate Committee Report including CDC/NIOSH language, click here.
Established in 1942, AAOHN is a 10,000 member professional association dedicated to advancing the health, safety and productivity of domestic and global workforces by providing education, research, public policy and practice resources for occupational and environmental health nurses. These professionals are the largest group of health care providers serving the worksite.
###
