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Georgia School Health Facts (click)
January 2010 -GASN officers Lisa Byrns, R.N., President, Carol Darsey, R.N., President Elect, and Jeannie Edwards, R.N., State Director meet with State School Superintendent Cathy Cox and Dr. Garry McGiboney
************************************* HR 2730 Ratio Support Bill *************************************************** April 2009 - Governor Perdue signed the 2010 state budget. School Nurse funding remains with only a 3% reduction which means 29.1 million is still budgeted for school nursing for the 2010 fiscal year. ************************************************** GASN State Director Jeannie Edwards , Consultant Cathalene Teahan and GASN President Joanne Giel at Georgia State Capital after giving testimony supporting School Nurse Funding to the House Appropriations/Education Subcommittee. 
*********************************************************************  Senate Panel OKs Budget With Clock Winding Down For Session (3/30/09) With the clock ticking on the 2009 legislative session, the Senate Appropriations Committee on Monday put its proposal on the table for the 2010 budget, but the measure won’t get to a vote in the full chamber until Wednesday - the Legislatures’ 39th and next-to-last day. Under the current schedule, that would leave House-Senate negotiators just one day - Thursday, when the Legislature is scheduled to be in recess - to work out their differences and submit a compromise to both chambers on Friday.
But the measure adopted by the Senate budget-writing panel takes some potential issues off the table. Senate budget writers agreed, for example, with the House on doing away with cuts proposed by Gov. Sonny Perdue in Medicaid provider rates (he proposed a 10 percent cut for hospitals and a 6 percent cut for other providers.) It also restores funds for school nurses. ************************************************************** Thank you to Susan Dillard for sharing this compelling story bringing home the consequences of not staffing school nurses to protect children with chronic health conditions while at school. http://www.thenewstribune.com/health/story/650722.html _______________________________________________________________________ Please continue to contact your Senators and Representatives and share with them why school nurses are so vital all day every day in the school setting. Georgia law requires parents to send their most precious possessions, their children, off to school at least 180 days every year. Shouldn't Georgia law also require that their safety and health needs be protected while there? ________________________________________________________________________ GASN State Director Jeannie Edwards and President Joanne Giel were interviewed by Lori Geary of WSB TV in Atlanta following their testimony at the 2010 Budget Hearings Appropriation for Education Subcommittee hearing yesterday. http://www.wsbtv.com/video/18890725/index.html ________________________________________________________________________   
Jeannie Edwards, R.N. - Georgia's Director to the National Association of School Nurses is seen here in Washington, D.C. at the January 2009 NASN Board of Directors meeting. In center photo, Jeannie is seen with Mary Louise Embry, NASN's Director of Government Affairs, Donna Kosiorowski, R.N. -NASN Director from Conn. and U.S. Representative Lois Capps, R.N. of California. In the far right photo Jeannie poses with NASN's Director of Government Affairs, Mary Louise Embry and U.S. Representative Carolyn McArthy of New York who is also a nurse. ADVOCACY ETIQUETTE We encourage everyone to review the Advocacy Etiquette rules as we communicate with our legislators. Although many individuals are very passionate about the health and safety of their children, it is always best to address our representatives with respect and understanding of the processes. With the current budget issue, our Representatives and Senators did not remove the School Nurse funding from the budget; that was done in the Governors budget proposal. We are asking our Representatives and Senators to reinstate what the Governors proposal removed. All communications that go through this website are screened for appropriateness however GASN has no control over what individuals send through personal emails. Links to Articles and Webcasts of School Nurse Funding Issues http://www.facebook.com/group.php?sid=ddf1364384d308c2f9e31e570c16dadd&gid=45170673234 http://www.accessnorthga.com/detail.php?n=217596 http://douglas-neighbor.com/detail/145822.html http://www.ajc.com/health/content/shared-blogs/ajc/parenting/entries/2009/02/08/losing_school_n.html%3Fcxntfid%3Dblogs_momania http://www.beaconcast.com/articles/20090124 http://www.unionrecorder.com/opinion/local_story_027220218.html?keyword=topstory http://www.examiner.com/a-1807339~Ga__lawmakers_look_at_cutting_school_nurse_funding.html http://chronicle.augusta.com/cgi-bin/print_story.pl http://chronicle.augusta.com/cgi-bin/print_story.pl http://www.wsbtv.com/video/18578070/index.html http://www.myfoxatlanta.com/myfox/MyFox/pages/sidebar_video.jsp?contentId=8317996&version=1&locale=EN-UShttp://www.jacksonville.com/news/georgia/2009-01-25/story/school_nurses_more_than_bandage_for_budget_cuts http://www.wtvm.com/Global/story.asp?S=9741846 http://matchbin-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/public/sites/368/assets/01_29_09.pdf?AWSAccessKeyId=0B7XE4Z9Y6MDGTWDRJG2&Expires=1233339317&Signature=7L/89jWgZxHYQ5/IjLhtVdppdBo= http://www.cherokeetribune.com/content/index/showcontentitem/area/7/section/24/item/126469.html ********************************************************* Our Web email tool and petition is ready. Please remember to use your personal email address in the petition. Go to the home page, click on the large banner "Call to Action" or the "Petitions" link on the left and fill in your contact information. We encourage you to replace the default message and subject line with your own reasons for keeping the school nurse funding. Then click on the "Send" tab - this will enter your name and contact information onto the petition and all individual messages will be emailed to all legislators weekly. Thank you for your support and help to persuade our legislators to reinstate school nurse funding into the 2010 State budget. ***************************************************************************************************** Sample letter to Governor by LeighAnn Bagley ************************************************************** Points to remember in contacting legislators ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Link to Georgia's virtual House of Representatives http://www.legis.state.ga.us/legis/2009_10/house/index.htm Find committee appointments, legislative updates and more. **************************************************************************************************** Watch this website regularly. There may be updates daily or more often. SEE LEGISLATIVE CONTACT WEBSITE LINK BELOW. In Governor Perdue's budget proposal for 2009-2010 he has recommended eliminating all state funding for school nursing. "School Nurses Purpose: Provide appropriate health procedures to allow students to remain in school and increase opportunities for academic success. Recommended Change: 1. Eliminate state funding support for school nurses. ($30,000,000) Total Change ($30,000,000)" ALL persons concerned regarding the devastating effects on the health, safety and academic achievement of students in our Georgia public schools should call and write to your state representatives and senators asking them to restore this vital funding to the budget. Click on http://www.legis.state.ga.us/ to find contact information to your state representatives and senators. Call them, write to them and explain to them that children deserve a school nurse. ******************************************************************************** All districts must be active to promote health in schools and work with our legislators to better assist us in providing proper healthcare in the educational environment. Remember: "Healthy Children Make Better Students
Better Students Make Healthy Communities" ********************************************************************************** |
