If healthcare reform resulted in salary caps of $40k for nurses would you stay?

livesinscrubs · Jul 25, 2009

I love my job. I'm very good at it, couldn't see changing careers at this point so I would say I would stay in this profession, salary cap or not ( hypothetically speaking of course)

nurseforlife · Jul 25, 2009

What are you talking about? Why would you begin to think that a salary cap is in the future, and would begin to take shape. For one thing, this reform is exactly what nurses need. The last thing any government would want to do is upset the nursing profession. There is a projection of more people obtaining health care which they presently aren't able to. If anything, nurses will be in more of a demand than ever, with more jobs, and opportunities. You must be joking!

beachbutterfly · Jul 25, 2009

To all these people that think American nurses are spoiled: Are you freakin' kidding me? Not my problem that other people are not willing to fight for what they deserve. And to the person that asked if I'd rather work at McDonald's- I shouldn't have to, because I worked very hard to get where I am..I worked full-time during nursing school and paid my own way. Working at McDonald's is unskilled labor-nursing is not.
When the CEO's of hospitals stop making millions of dollars, then you can talk to nurses about taking a pay cut. And I'm not kidding about the millions of dollars-the CEO of one of our health systems in my state made 3 million dollars last year.

I beg you pardon?! Other people not willing to fight for what they deserve..a lot of the nurses from other countries protest against low wages because the pay is really low and I mean reallllllllllly low like you have to work two nursing job just to afford an apartment,yes apartment not even a house,here you are talking like you cant even afforfd a decent living on 40,000 salary...and in response to your comment about fighting for what they deserve America has long time robbed innocent countries,used slavery and migration,not to mention that we are the most hated and most in debt country in the world and we are doing all this because yes we are spoiled,... just to stay rich sort of a double standarts if you ask me and before you jump to conclusions I'm an american nurse.Also please do not oversimplify facts...there are million countries who cannot afford paying their nurses high wages.Why? Look at the geographics,history facts,when you'l do your research maybe you wont make such a bald statements.

beachbutterfly · Jul 25, 2009

What are you talking about? Why would you begin to think that a salary cap is in the future, and would begin to take shape. For one thing, this reform is exactly what nurses need. The last thing any government would want to do is upset the nursing profession. There is a projection of more people obtaining health care which they presently aren't able to. If anything, nurses will be in more of a demand than ever, with more jobs, and opportunities. You must be joking!

Thank you for an objective,factual post...

Otessa, BSN, RN · Jul 25, 2009

I agree with Squirrel,

I can make out fine on $40,000-have in the past. BUT I have been in healthcare for more than 20 years-I will NOT accept $40,000-neither would teachers(or other professions) who have worked in their profession for that long-most don't-have several friends with the same amount of work time and they make the same or more than I do AND they have summers off(teachers)..........and Christmas....and New Years.......

otessa

Cindy-san · Jul 25, 2009

I certainly wouldn't be sinking all this $$$ into grad school if I was only making $40~50K. :uhoh21:

Medic/Nurse, BSN, RN · Jul 25, 2009

40K for working as a nurse in the nursing climate of today - no freakin way.

No

Now if the healthcare nirvana bill gets passed and -

1. Me and my family has free healthcare. (Currently my husband and I pay over 15K for healthcare and we are fairly healthy - preventative, screenings, few monthly meds and insurance premiums. Add it up folks and be sure and add costs of OTC meds, supplies, office visits co-pays, access issues that mean travel)

2. Customers are banished and PATIENTS return. (Also press-gainey goes bankrupt. Management has strict requirements and they are on a level salary as well and basically STOP THE CRAP that makes nursing so well, crappy.)

3. Those PATIENTS that fail to take personal responsibility are denied care. See if you choose to remain a problem patient at least you are not my problem patient. Yep, that may be harsh - but, I am sick of seeing the same folks over and over and over because they DO NOT CARE for themselves and then DEMAND more from the system.

4. Strict guidelines governing care of patients. Safe ratio of nurses-to-patients, plenty of ancillary help and a shift to change practices away from CYA care and care ordered vicariously through TRIAL LAWYERS

5. Allow those that provide care to say NO.

Start with EMS --- No, we are not giving you a ride to the hospital for your headache, stubbed toe, rash, anxiety over a fight with your boyfriend/neighbor/girlfriend/babydaddy/mom/dad/pimp...., bug bite, broken nail, weekly deliberate "overdose" of benadryl/cough syrup/Jim Beam...., missed doctor appointment, any missed period has to get a pregnancy test and if + ultrasound - "I got a picture of my baby", medication refill, flu shot, anthrax exposure, anything you deliberately stick in any body opening, because you don't have a car or because you have called all your friends to meet you in EMERGENCY because the ambulance is here!

Allow EMERGENCY rooms to functions as they are intended - not as a catch all. Not in need of EMERGENCY CARE - bye-bye! See not inclusive list above add anything that does not involved A - B - C threats or endangers loss of limbs. See if it doesn't show up in the ER it makes it harder to be admitted to the hospital

No money for your inhalers/BP meds/diabetic supplies/band-aids/motrin/tylenol/BCP's yet you have smokes, cell phones, ghetto nails, premium denim jeans, lots of blingy things, and NO JOB - well, sorry under the new 40K nurse plan - if I cannot afford it, it may make me covet your cushy lifestyle and then I get all distracted and can't MAKE SURE YOU GET YOUR ______ . Not bitter, not frou-frou, don't smoke and I have nice things - yet, I still get all cranky when I see abuses and get treated like a servant. It is super rewarding when some of these folks that DO NOT WORK have lots of time to call ADMINISTRATION to make sure and complain. BONUS POINTS: They return and tell me flat out that they called and complained on me and will do it again!

Anyway - what am I talking about - the SYTEM is so broken that I cannot see any fix. We have an entitled society that has zero personal responsibility/accountability, we have attorneys on every corner, a system that allows PATIENTS to be customers and even gives them a card with the 1-800 complaint line for ANY problem, drug companies that have taken over the world, insurance companies that pull every dirty trick on the sickest patients because they will DIE before they get their care "approved", an environment of infectious disease that has run amuck, months long waits for primary care in many areas, "emergency" care that delivers out of fear of litigation, technology that keeps one alive at all costs even if the quality of life is ZERO and let's those without anything and those with everything access without limits - everyone else has to make choices.

The government provided healthcare that currently exists is the most EXPENSIVE on earth. And yet they are going fix it. Fix what you have now and then move forward. And for all the "stakeholders" that are present -

The associations of doctors, hospitals and insurance companies that are at the table "advising" and "educating" - anyone that thinks they are there to HELP is insane. They are there to lobby to make sure that they continue to get their piece of the healthcare pie.

Sick. You bet.

Nurses that take a salary cap and cut is NOT the answer. Quick - delete the threat before one of the "stakeholders" decides that cutting the pay of all those nurses will solve the problems. Cha-ching!

nurseforlife · Jul 25, 2009

I beg you pardon?! Other people not willing to fight for what they deserve..a lot of the nurses from other countries protest against low wages because the pay is really low and I mean reallllllllllly low like you have to work two nursing job just to afford an apartment,yes apartment not even a house,here you are talking like you cant even afforfd a decent living on 40,000 salary...and in response to your comment about fighting for what they deserve America has long time robbed innocent countries,used slavery and migration,not to mention that we are the most hated and most in debt country in the world and we are doing all this because yes we are spoiled,... just to stay rich sort of a double standarts if you ask me and before you jump to conclusions I'm an american nurse.Also please do not oversimplify facts...there are million countries who cannot afford paying their nurses high wages.Why? Look at the geographics,history facts,when you'l do your research maybe you wont make such a bald statements.

are you making this statement because you actually believe that American nurses will be at a 40,000 salary cap? Where are you getting this information. Why are you worried about something that has not even been proposed? The only information I recall stated by President Obama was that his health care reform structure would help streamline the paperwork that can take up more than one-third of the average nurse's day, freeing them to spend more time with their patients. This would help to make our jobs a little bit easier. He plans to attract and train the young nurses we need to make up a nursing shortage that's only getting worse. Why would you speculate a $40,000 salary cap if that would obviously not "attract nurses". I doubt that would be in his plan. The fact is there is no evidence of a $40,000 cap on nursing salary.

PostOpPrincess, BSN, RN · Jul 25, 2009

So Ok in other words you would rather work at McDonald for 8 per hour,not being able to to afford the rent,performing tasks that dont really bring you any personal satisfaction.Most nurses from other countries make very little the pay is very low,we should be lucky that we have the opportunity to make decent salaries here in North America,but as always I state
Ps.Anyway if you know how to handle you money you can definitely survive and even travel on a 40$ salary!!!

Handling the money isn't the issue; get real.

And yes , the last time I checked nobody ever had a hypotensive crisis at the drive-thru.

metal_m0nk, BSN, RN · Jul 25, 2009

Handling the money isn't the issue; get real.
And yes , the last time I checked nobody ever had a hypotensive crisis at the drive-thru.

A hypertensive crisis might not be out of the question though....

:lol2:

Jokes, and jokes, and jokes, and jokes...

Sorry 'bout that.

Carry on.

DoGoodThenGo · Jul 25, 2009

Remember well back in the 1980's seeing pages of adverts for nurses in the New York Times, with wages running from 18K (new grads), to about 25K (RNs with various levels of experience). A cap of $40k would put nurses in this area actually below what they made twenty years ago when adjusted for inflation.

Even at 70K and above nurses in expensive living parts of the United States such as CA and NY barely earn enough to be called "middle class".

GadgetRN71, ASN, RN · Jul 26, 2009

I beg you pardon?! Other people not willing to fight for what they deserve..a lot of the nurses from other countries protest against low wages because the pay is really low and I mean reallllllllllly low like you have to work two nursing job just to afford an apartment,yes apartment not even a house,here you are talking like you cant even afforfd a decent living on 40,000 salary...and in response to your comment about fighting for what they deserve America has long time robbed innocent countries,used slavery and migration,not to mention that we are the most hated and most in debt country in the world and we are doing all this because yes we are spoiled,... just to stay rich sort of a double standarts if you ask me and before you jump to conclusions I'm an american nurse.Also please do not oversimplify facts...there are million countries who cannot afford paying their nurses high wages.Why? Look at the geographics,history facts,when you'l do your research maybe you wont make such a bald statements.

But we are not talking about nurses in other parts of the world, we are talking about American nurses. So in your opinion, because nurses in other countries don't make a decent wage, we should just lie down and take whatever treatment the PTB want to dish out? I don't think so.

Don't really give a flying fig if we are hated or not either. Not my fight if nurses in other countries get paid with chickens. The cold hard fact of life is that you have to fight your own fight. Now, you're young. I was all idealistic like that too at your age. But, you wil realize a few things as you get older. 1) other countries are no angels either..many have histories of slavery, bloodshed, corruption. 2) many other professions in healthcare make far more than nurses and would never in a million years dream of taking a pay cut. Why the heck should nurses? For far too long we've been expected to take care of patients out of the goodness of our hearts and to just tolerate all kinds of crap. Guess what..I love my patients, but I love money just as much. I love the fact that I make a decent wage, that I can make a decent life for myself.

You seem fixated on this figure of $40,000 and with convincing people that we can live on this. Again I tell you, I CAN live on it..why should I have to? :rolleyes: My base pay is well above that, and with taking call, I can double that easily. :yeah: