What is Happening with the Nursing Boards During Covid?

June 18, 2020 by LORIE A BROWN, R.N., M.N., J.D. Leave a Comment

As a member and president elect of The American Association of Nurse Attorneys (TAANA.org), I have relationships with many nurse attorneys who practice before the various nursing boards throughout the country. In Indiana, where my office is located, the Board has filed very few cases against nurses so far and we had our first virtual hearing this week. Each state has taken a different approach on how to handle their cases against nurses. I did an informal survey and the answers were quite diverse.

Most states have found a way to function and continue filing complaints against nurses, having prehearing settlement conferences and hearings over the phone or virtually. However, many states are not lifting probation or suspensions during this time.

Not surprising, New York, New Jersey, North Carolina and Washington are postponing hearings until the fall.

I was hoping that the Boards would see how valuable nurses are during this time and take that into consideration, but I am not sure this is going to be the case. At least in Indiana, they seem to be taking the same position they have always taken. Hopefully, you are not expecting anything from the Board but just know things can be delayed.

Leading San Diego RN Creates Free Video Series for Frontline Nurses

April 19, 2020 by LORIE A BROWN, R.N., M.N., J.D. Leave a Comment

“Lorie Brown put together the video series to provide tips for nurses on the front line of the coronavirus fight. It features 18 experts who provide advice such as keeping up immunity, getting better sleep, practicing mindfulness and understanding nurses’ rights.” [Read Full Article]

Nurses stuck on suspension longer than expected

April 17, 2020 by LORIE A BROWN, R.N., M.N., J.D. Leave a Comment

“Lorie Brown is both a nurse and attorney. She’s fighting for nurses who are currently suspended or on probation to return and aid in the fight against the novel coronavirus pandemic.” [Read Full Article]

Nursing And The Coronavirus

March 12, 2020 by LORIE A BROWN, R.N., M.N., J.D. 2 Comments

A nurse working at Kaiser in California took care of a patient who was positive for the coronavirus. She volunteered to care for this patient because she had training on the recommended protective gear. Her assumption was that should something happen to her, she would be cared for.

Unfortunately, after a few days passed, the nurse became ill. She put herself on a 14-day self-quarantine period. However, she could not get tested to confirm whether she had contracted the coronavirus. At that time, she was put on some type of list.

The United States has the lowest number of tests conducted for the coronavirus as compared to the rest of the world. It goes without saying that if we cannot get tested, how do we know who has it and then how can we limit the spread of the coronavirus?

Fortunately, this nurse had the support of her union, National Nurses United, which hosted a press conference on this matter at 11:00 A.M. PDT on March 12, 2020. You can listen to it here.

What concerns me about this situation is that this nurse took care of a patient with confirmed coronavirus and became ill. My issue with this nurse who became ill after she cared for the patient is that if it is not proven that she contracted the coronavirus during her treatment of the patient, her employer would have grounds to deny any workers compensation claim she might make.

It is very important that nurses who are exposed to the coronavirus get the proper documentation, so they not only get their time off but also for any medical care co-pays and any other sequelae.

I hope nothing like this happens to you, but it possibly could. Approximately 65 employees from the nursing home where many of the deaths from coronavirus are now ill but unable to get confirmatory testing. It’s scary that all these people are getting infected and I am hopeful they can contain the virus.

In the meantime, do whatever you can do to keep yourself healthy including taking vitamin C, exercising, drinking plenty of fluids, get adequate sleep and taking probiotics.

What has your facility done in light of the coronavirus outbreak? Have any specific precautions been put in place there to protect you?

Please share in the comments below.

Nurses As Independent Contractors

February 6, 2020 by LORIE A BROWN, R.N., M.N., J.D. 3 Comments

A new law went into effect in California last month regulating “gig” labor. The legislation was aimed at companies such as Uber and Lyft which inappropriately classify their drivers as independent contractors. The hope was that if they were to be labeled “employees,” they would be entitled to regular employment benefits such as minimum wage, sick pay and insurance benefits. However, the unintended consequence is that this could affect registered nurses, certified registered nurses, anesthetists and nurse practitioners.

This legislation came from an April 2018 California Supreme Court ruling that independent contractors must be free to perform their work as they choose and it must be in a different line of work from the contracting company and the independent contractor must operate their own business.

Here, nurses, CRNAs and NPs are not allowed to work as they wish but must conform to the hospital’s policies and procedures while working in the same line of work as the company contracting their services.

The legislation requires an ABC test which the independent contractor must:

Be free from the hiring entity’s control;
Do work which is “outside the usual course of the hiring entity’s business”; and
Be established in a trade similar to the work being performed.

If nurses work as independent contractors, they’re working within the course of company’s usual business. So, they would fail Part B of the test.

The upsides of the law are that nurses who lack the ability to get benefits can unionize and receive legal protection and health insurance now will be able to have those benefits provided.

Although California’s new law is stronger than many similar laws, 20 states have already implemented the ABC test in one form or another. Therefore, if you take away that this pertains only to the Golden State, you must think again.

There are many pros and cons to being an independent contractor versus an employee. As an independent contractor, you usually can work when you want, make more money and have more write offs than would a traditional employee such as anything that can be considered as a business expense if you are contracting as a business.

The downside to being an independent contractor is that the hospital does not pay their share of taxes which, of course, means you will owe more taxes.

That notwithstanding, having a nicer paycheck upfront certainly is helpful.

Be very careful if you are working as an independent contractor and should have been an employee. This considers your status as misclassified as an independent contractor rather than properly as an employee. There are serious consequences such as owing back taxes to the state and federal governments which could include penalties.

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