Food/cigarette tax swap – Update by Kathy Sharp.  Members were urged to call their state Representatives and Senators asking for support of this bill.  Tennessee has one of the highest food taxes in the nation and also one of the lowest cigarette taxes.  The food/cigarette tax swap would reverse this, giving a significant break to the average consumer.  Sales tax on grocery food would go from 6% to 3%.

Practice Doctorate – Kathy Sharp gave an update on the status of the DNP.  She wrote a letter in response to a Medscape video which originally aired in April supporting the DNP.  In this letter she stated that the opposing view should be presented in a similar video, and the Medscape editor, Dr. George Lundberg, invited her or a representative to respond.  Wendy Vogel and Kathy Sharp have written a response and submitted it for approval.  They are awaiting news about a videotaping date!  Kathy reiterated that this response was proof that one person can make a difference and advised everyone to be proactive in the legislative and other arenas.  A 9-page summary of the activity regarding the DNP, including a review of the literature was done by Wendy Vogel and those  present were provided with a copy.  Reprints of this may be obtained by emailing Wendy at wvogel@charter.net or Kathy at mulekat@charter.net .

Nurses Day was May 9th.  Congratulations to this years honoree Peggy McConnell.

Affiliate Memberships - Tracey Luther presented her findings about affiliate membership with the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners.  Only the AANP responded.  The positives were outlined and it was suggested that she submit this to the President/Secretary who will forward to the voting members.  The negative side is that the AANP has not come out against the DNP, but has taken a much more conservative approach and made recommendations only.  Kathy Sharp state that this was a disappointing stance on an important subject but was assumed to be a response which would avoid alienating any members.  Voting members were invited to read the information and a vote was tabled until the next meeting.

Fall conference – Tentative plan is for Friday, September the 22nd.  The planning committee will be contacted via email regarding the proposed outline and asked to volunteer for responsibilities.

American Medical Association House of Delegates Resolution 814 – A handout of the Resolution was given to those present.  It seems that the AMA has established a fund (with estimated cost of $171.975) to study the education qualifications, academic requirements, licensure, certification, independent governance, ethical standards, disciplinary processes, and peer review of limited health care providers and limited independent practitioners.  The report of this project will be due at the 2006 annual AMA meeting.

Urgent Legislative Need - Members urged to call or email members of the Senate Government Operations Committee regarding SB2512 and HB2702 regarding the Sunset Board of Nursing Legislation.  This bill is to be considered on May 23.  We need to voice opposition to any amendments placed on this bill.  Amendments would allow an online diploma program to operate in the State of Tennessee without prior approval by the Tennessee Board of Nursing. 

Pre-Surgical Certification by Nurse Practitioners - Tracy Luther recently had an issue with completing a pre-surgical certification which Bristol Surgery Center would not accept unless signed by a physician.  She was told that this was against TN NP Scope of Practice (not true).  Other members expressed similar resistance.  Since NETNPA has independent NPs, this poses a problem.  By unanimous vote, it was agreed that Tracy would send specifics to Kathy Sharp regarding this incident.  Kathy will then write a letter and attach a petition that members can sign at the next meeting to protest this unfair treatment.  It was also noted that an affilation with AANP might afford NETNPA some strength if/when we face issues like this again.