The Iowa House of Representatives voted to set pay limits for temporary nursing staff working in Iowa hospitals and nursing homes. The bill was passed on an 80-17 vote, according to legislative records.
The legislation, Iowa House file 2391, would prohibit healthcare staffing firms from charging more than 150% of the statewide average wage for nurses. However, the total amount would not just include the temporary nurse’s hourly wage but also include administrative fees, contract fees, transportation or travel stipends, per diems and any other costs such as overtime and taxes that a healthcare staffing firm is authorized to charge clients.
The industry is fighting the regulation.
“We’re still working on the bill in the Senate to either defeat it or mitigate the cap because the House version is not workable,” Toby Malara, VP of government relations at the American Staffing Association said.
“The 150% is just not a realistic number,” Malara said. It will make getting travel nurses into Iowa more difficult and will have a negative impact especially on rural areas, he added.
(This story was updated to include more details about the legislation.)