The FNA is the only nursing organization representing ALL of nursing in Florida, regardless of specialty or practice area. As a constituent of the American Nurses Association, FNA advocates on behalf of Registered Nurses, APRNs, CNSs, Nurse Educators, and Nurse Executives before the Florida Legislature, regulatory bodies, and the broader public.

"Every day, lawmakers make decisions that directly affect nurses and the patients they serve," Willa Hill, Executive Director for the Florida Nurses Association. "These endorsements represent candidates who have demonstrated a commitment to supporting nursing practice, protecting patient safety, and advancing a healthy Florida. We are proud to stand behind each of these individuals as they seek to serve their communities."

The FNA encourages all Florida nurses and healthcare advocates to learn more about these endorsed candidates and make their voices heard at the ballot box. Florida's nurses care for patients in every corner of the state — and the legislators they elect should reflect that same dedication to health, safety, and service.

About the Florida Nurses Association

The Florida Nurses Association (FNA) is the premier professional nursing organization in Florida and the only organization representing ALL of nursing regardless of specialty or practice area. FNA's mission is to serve and support all registered nurses through professional development, advocacy, and the promotion of excellence in every area of professional nursing practice. For more information, visit www.floridanurse.org.

Florida Nurses Association

1235 E. Concord St., Orlando, FL 32803

Phone: 407.487.2230  |  www.floridanurse.org

Introduction

The Florida Nurses Association (FNA), representing the voice of nurses across the state of Florida, join our colleagues, the Florida Medical Association in our commitment to safeguarding public health through evidence-based practice, prevention, and advocacy. Vaccination has been one of the most effective public health measures in modern history, preventing illness, disability, and death among vulnerable populations. Vaccination is recognized as one of the top ten public health achievements, and over the past 50 years, vaccines have saved more than 154 million lives globally and contributed to a 40% reduction in infant mortality

The Risks of Lifting Vaccine Requirements

The removal of vaccine requirements poses a direct and significant threat to the health of both children and adults, particularly older adults. Without broad vaccination coverage, preventable diseases such as measles, whooping cough, influenza, and COVID-19 are likely to re-emerge at higher rates, jeopardizing decades of progress in public health. In the United States, routine immunization programs have prevented an estimated 20 million cases of disease and approximately 42,000 deaths per birth cohort, while saving billions in healthcare and societal costs

Impact on Children

• Children rely on high vaccination rates in schools and communities to maintain herd immunity.
  
• Vaccine-preventable diseases disproportionately harm children who are immunocompromised or too young to be fully vaccinated.
• Outbreaks in school and daycare settings spread rapidly, leading to preventable hospitalizations, long-term complications, and even death.
  
• Routine childhood immunizations have prevented more than 24 million cases of vaccine-preventable diseases in a single year in the United States, with diseases such as mumps reduced by over 99% and varicella by 98%
  

Impact on Working Adults and the Workforce

• Adults are also vulnerable to vaccine preventable diseases. These illnesses can cause and increased spread in the workforce and have a significant impact on the workplace. 
  
• In addition, if children are ill, parents would need to stay home to care for ill children which would also impact the workplace.  
  
• It also puts teachers and school personnel at risk for contagious disease.
  Impact on Older Adults
  
• The elderly population is at heightened risk for severe illness and mortality from vaccine-preventable diseases, particularly influenza, pneumonia, and COVID-19.
  
• Lower community vaccination rates increase exposure risk for older adults, many of whom may already have weakened immune systems or chronic health conditions.
• Among adults aged 50 years and older, vaccine-preventable diseases contribute to millions of cases annually and an estimated $6.9 to $34.9 billion in economic burden.
  
• Hospitalizations from preventable infections place additional strain on healthcare systems and contribute to rising healthcare costs.
  

Public Health Consequences

Lifting vaccine requirements undermines herd immunity, endangers medically vulnerable individuals, and threatens the safety of workplaces, schools, and healthcare facilities. It also erodes public trust in science and medicine, creating greater opportunities for misinformation to spread. The long-tem consequences include:

• Rising healthcare costs from preventable outbreaks, despite vaccination programs saving an estimated $14 billion in direct costs and $69 billion in total societal costs per birth cohort.
  
• Increased morbidity and mortality.
  
• Reversal of decades of progress in disease prevention.
  

The Role of Nurses

Nurses, as trusted professionals, play a central role in patient education, advocacy, and protection. The FNA emphasizes that maintaining strong vaccine requirements is essential to protecting patients, families, and communities, particularly our most vulnerable populations.

Position of the Florida Nurses Association

The Florida Nurses Association strongly opposes efforts to lift vaccine requirements for children, adults including pregnant women, older adults and the broader public.

FNA advocates for:

• Continued enforcement of evidence-based vaccine policies in schools, healthcare facilities, and community settings.
  
• Public education campaigns to counter vaccine misinformation.
  
• Protection of vulnerable populations through policies that uphold public health standards.

Conclusion

The Florida Nurses Association reaffirms its commitment to promoting health, preventing disease, and protecting the most vulnerable among us. Vaccines save lives. Weakening vaccine requirements endangers children, the elderly, and the entire community. FNA calls on policymakers, healthcare leaders, and the public to stand united in preserving strong vaccine protections for all.

Contact: Willa Hill, RN
Executive Director
whill@floridanurse.org   
(407) 482-2230

Summary of Concerns and Implications for the Nursing Workforce

Overview
The Department of Education (DOE) is currently developing new rules that would significantly limit access to federal student loans—specifically unsubsidized and PLUS loans—for many graduate students. These changes stem from provisions enacted under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (H.R. 1) and are being shaped through the Reimagining and Improving Student Education (RISE) Committee’s negotiated rulemaking process. Under the emerging framework, only students enrolled in approved professional degree programs would qualify for the full range of federal graduate loan options. Despite meeting every stated professional criterion, graduate nursing education has been excluded from this classification.

This exclusion places advanced practice nursing programs—including Nurse Practitioners (NPs), Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists (CRNAs), Certified Nurse Midwives (CNMs), Clinical Nurse Specialists (CNSs), nurse executives, informaticists, researchers, and nurse faculty—at a severe disadvantage. More than 200,000 individuals have already signed a petition urging the DOE to correct this decision.

Why This Matters

 1. Threat to the Healthcare Workforce

Nursing is the largest segment of the U.S. healthcare workforce and the backbone of patient care. Advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs) deliver critical primary, maternal, anesthesia, behavioral, and specialty care, especially in rural and underserved areas. Excluding nursing programs from the definition of “professional degree” will:

• Limit federal loan access for future APRNs
  
• Deter nurses from pursuing required master’s and doctoral degrees
  
• Deepen workforce shortages across clinical and academic settings
  

At a time when the U.S. already faces severe provider shortages, this policy would worsen access to care for millions of Americans.

2. Significant Financial Barriers

Graduate nursing students face an average cost of more than $30,000 per year, exceeding the proposed annual federal loan cap of $20,500. Under the current proposal:

• Nursing students would be capped at $100,000 in lifetime borrowing
  
• Professional programs such as medicine, dentistry, and law are allowed up to $200,000
• Nurses relying on federal programs such as Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) would be disproportionately restricted
  

These financial limits are misaligned with the educational requirements necessary for APRN roles, many of which require doctoral preparation.

3. Worsening the Nurse Faculty Crisis

A nationwide shortage of nurse faculty is restricting nursing school enrollment capacity. In 2022 alone it was reported that:

• 2,166 full-time nursing faculty positions were vacant in the US 
  
• More than 80,000 qualified applicants were turned away from nursing programs
  
• A significant portion of current faculty is nearing retirement
  

Restricting graduate loan access will reduce the number of nurses able to pursue master’s and doctoral degrees required for teaching roles—further shrinking the pipeline of future registered nurses.

4. Misalignment with Federal Health Priorities

 The decision contradicts other federal initiatives that invest in and expand the role of advanced practice nurses—such as CMS’s Rural Transformation Grants and HHS programs aimed at improving access to primary and maternal care. Policymakers across the political spectrum have expressed concern that the DOE proposal undermines national workforce and health equity goals.

Process Concerns

The RISE Committee has stated that it aims to prioritize educational programs with strong return-on-investment and clear pathways to professional employment. Advanced practice nursing meets these criteria. Nursing organizations—including ANA (American Nurses Association), the Nursing Community Coalition, and PARCA (Patient Access to Responsible Care Alliance)—submitted detailed comments, yet several committee members claimed they had “not heard from nurses,” raising concerns about transparency and stakeholder engagement.

Additionally, the Committee has added other professions to the “professional degree” list but not nursing, despite clear evidence and precedent supporting its inclusion.

What’s at Stake

• Reduced access to federal loans for thousands of future APRNs
• Barriers for nurses in rural, underserved, and low-income communities
• A smaller pipeline of nurse practitioners, CRNAs, midwives, and faculty
  
• Exacerbation of existing shortages across primary care, maternal health, anesthesia, behavioral health, and academic nursing
• Threats to patient access to high-quality, cost-effective care nationwide
  

Call to Action/What You Can Do

The Florida Nurses Association in concert with the American Nurses Association (ANA) urges the Department of Education to revise its proposed definition of “professional degree” to explicitly include graduate nursing programs.

We also encourage nurses, patients, educators, healthcare leaders, and all who rely on the nursing profession—which is every American—to take action:

1. Participate in the Upcoming Public Comment Period

When the DOE releases its Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, submit comments expressing support for including nursing as a professional degree program. 

2. Add Your Voice at RNAction.org

More than 200,000 individuals have already signed the petition calling for change. Visit RNAction.org to sign and share the petition at this link: https://ana.quorum.us/campaign/professionaldegreepetition/. 

3. Mobilize Your Networks

Encourage colleagues, students, patients, and community partners to engage. A unified public response is critical to ensuring the administration corrects this harmful oversight.

Protecting nurses’ access to graduate education means protecting America’s access to healthcare.

Now is the time to make your voice heard.

This year’s honorees represent a wide spectrum of nursing expertise and leadership, reflecting FNA’s commitment to recognizing individuals and organizations who safeguard, advance, and transform nursing in Florida.

2025 FNA Icon Award Recipients

• Advanced Practice Nursing Icon Award
  Deborah Tedesco, DNP, APRN, ANP-BC, FNAP, FAANP

• Barbara Lumpkin Award
  Monica Barfield, DNP, APRN, AGACNP-BC, FNP-BC

• Community Action Icon Award
  Kina Lucombe, MSN, RN, CCM
  Tampa General Hospital Certified Diabetes Care and Education Specialists

• Nurse Educator Icon Award
  Kasey Nestor, EdD, RN, CNE

• Nursing Administration Icon Award
  Latoya Connor, DNP, APRN, FNP-BC, RN, CVRN-BC

• Nursing Innovation and Creativity Icon Award
  Carmen Victoria Framil Suarez, DNP, APRN, ANP-BC, CNE, GS-C
  Anita M. Stephen, PhD, RN, CNL, CHSE

• Nursing Research Icon Award
  Trudy Gaillard, PhD, RN, CDCES, FAAN, FAHA

• Promoting an Environment for Excellence in Nursing Practice Icon Award
  BayCare Health System

• Excellence in Direct Patient Care Icon Award
  Stephen Applegate, RN

• President’s Award
  Nola Holness, PhD, CNM, APRN, ANP-C, CNE, FACNM
  Deborah Hogan, MPH, BSN, RN
  Aminah Johnson, MSN, BSHA, RN
  Melba Jamison, MSN, RN

Celebrating Excellence in Nursing

“The Icon Awards honor those who inspire us with their dedication to advancing nursing,” said Willa Fuller, Executive Director. “This year’s recipients represent the very best of our profession, setting the standard for leadership, innovation, and advocacy in healthcare.”

The FNA congratulates all of the award winners and thanks them for their unwavering commitment to excellence and to the future of nursing in Florida.

About the Florida Nurses Association
The Florida Nurses Association (FNA) is the only professional organization representing all nurses in Florida, advocating for nursing practice, promoting excellence in healthcare, and serving as the voice of nursing across the state.

For more information about the FNA and the Icon Awards, visit www.floridanurse.org.

Media Contact:
Willa Hill Fuller
Executive Director
Florida Nurses Association
whill@floridanurse.org | 407-487-2230

Orlando, FL – September 30, 2025 – The Florida Nurses Association (FNA) is proud to announce the installation of its newly elected Board of Directors, Nominating Committee, and Representatives to the American Nurses Association (ANA) Membership Assembly. The swearing-in ceremony took place during the Business Meeting at the FNA Membership Assembly on Friday, September 26, 2025. These dedicated leaders will serve the nursing community in their respective roles until September 2027.

FNA Board of Directors

• President: Marcos Gayol

• President-Elect: Valerie Morrison

• Vice President: Meghan Moroney

• Secretary: Deborah Hogan

• Treasurer: George Peraza-Smith

• Director of Recent Graduates: MacKenzie Simmons

• Northwest Region Director: Aminah Johnson

• North Central Region Director: Denise Schentrup

• Northeast Region Director: Amber Johnson

• East Central Region Director: Melba Jamison

• West Central Region Director: Robert Neff

• Southeast Region Director: Lisa Rivera

• Southwest Region Director: Anthony Silva

• South Region Director: Guillermo Valdes

• LERC Liaison: Marsha Martin

Nominating Committee

• Chair: Deirdre Shoemake

• Christina Bricker

• Lottie Cuthbertson

• Maritess Quinto

• Luzmary Ocampo

ANA Membership Assembly Representatives

• Marie O. Etienne

• Susan Fowler

• Melba Jamison

The newly elected leaders bring a wealth of expertise and diverse perspectives to their positions. Together, they will guide the Florida Nurses Association in its goal to promote excellence in nursing practice, advocacy, leadership, and education across the state of Florida.

“FNA is honored to welcome these dedicated nurse leaders to the Board of Directors and committees,” said FNA Executive Director Willa Hill. “Their collective vision and commitment will help strengthen the nursing profession and support nurses in every corner of Florida.”

About the Florida Nurses Association

The Florida Nurses Association (FNA) is the only organization in the state representing all of nursing, regardless of specialty, practice setting, or role. FNA advocates for nurses and healthcare excellence through education, leadership development, and policy advocacy at the state and national levels.

For more information, visit www.floridanurse.org.

Media Contact:
Willa Hill
Executive Director
Florida Nurses Association
407-487-2230 | whill@floridanurse.org