Missouri's attempt to expand coverage to thousands of people unable to get affordable health insurance has failed.

A Saint Louis University dean has implemented a nursing school program that she says can ensure quality nursing education and produce confident graduates.

Gov. Jay Nixon pushed a new $40 million plan to train health care professionals Thursday that will fund the first nursing program at Northwest Missouri State University since the late 1980s.

Some may find it hard to believe that the U.S. health insurance industry supports making major changes to the nation's healthcare system.

Three months after he was diagnosed with incurable brain cancer, Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.) vowed in an emotional Democratic National Convention address last summer that health reform would be "the cause of my life."

Republican frustration with Democratic plans to remake the health care system boiled over Thursday, as Republicans complained about the size, shape and cost of the emerging proposal.

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www.CoverMissouri.org

On June 2nd and 3rd, over 220 individuals gathered for Health Care Workforce Development: Cultivating Missouri’s Resources, the Missouri Foundation for Health’s sixth annual health summit. At the two-day conference, participants learned about the workforce shortage in Missouri and discussed solutions being implemented in Missouri and other states.

Some notable facts presented:

• Over 80 percent of the state has been designated as health professional shortage areas;
  
• More physicians and dentists are approaching retirement than the number about to enter the field;
  
• The graduation rate of registered nurses must increase by 90 percent to meet projected growth needs; and
  
• The typical nursing home replaces its entire staff every year.

Failure to effectively deal with workforce issues will delay the national efforts at health reform. As several participants and speakers pointed out, if there are not enough health care providers, increasing the number of people with health coverage does not mean they will be able to get health care. Investments must be made to educate and train providers willing to serve in rural and underserved areas of Missouri to ensure the availability of health care.

Learn more:

Presentations from Health Care Workforce Development: Cultivating Missouri's Resources

Who Will Care for Missouri’s Sick: Assuring an Adequate Health Care Workforce