Baldwin, Courtney Introduce Legislation to Protect Health Care Workers from Workplace Violence

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) and Representative Joe Courtney (D-CT-02) introduced legislation to protect health care workers from workplace violence. The Workplace Violence Prevention for Health Care and Social Service Worker Act would ensure that health care and social service workplaces implement proven techniques and are prepared to respond in the tragic event of a violent incident. Health care and social service workers were victims of 76 percent of all nonfatal injuries from workplace violence in 2020.

“Nurses, doctors, and anyone who is working to give our families health care deserve to work in a place that they are safe and free from violence, but in recent years we’ve seen workplace violence skyrocket,” said Senator Baldwin. “We rely on our health care workers every day to protect our communities, and in turn, we need to protect them from senseless acts of violence. That’s why I am introducing legislation to give our health care professionals long-overdue basic protections, helping address our healthcare workforce shortage and keeping our frontline heroes safe.”

“No worker—especially those we rely on for care—should be injured or killed on the job. Unfortunately, this workforce endures more violence than any other workforce in America. Tragically, a dedicated nurse from eastern Connecticut was murdered on the job in 2023 during a solo home-health visit to an extremely high risk patient with a criminal history of violence. Joyce’s preventable death was a reminder of the urgent need for Congress to buck up and act,” said Representative Courtney.  “Our legislation would put proven tactics into practice in hospitals and health care settings across the country to prevent violence before it happens. I’m grateful for the bipartisan coalition— backed by the support of the workers directly affected by this violence—who has worked tirelessly to move this legislation forward year after year.” 

The Workplace Violence Prevention in Healthcare and Social Services Act directs the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to issue a standard requiring health care and social service employers to write and implement a workplace violence prevention plan to prevent and protect employees from violent incidents.

While workplace violence trends were increasing before the pandemic, recent research suggests the problem has worsened considerably, contributing to staffing shortages. Nearly half of nurses surveyed in 2023 reported an increase in workplace violence.

In the Senate, the legislation is cosponsored by Senators Ed Markey (D-MA), Tim Kaine (D-VA), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Ben Ray Luján (D-NM), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Alex Padilla (D-CA), Tina Smith (D-MN), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Patty Murray (D-WA) Bernie Sanders (I-VT), and Elissa Slotkin (D-MI), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Jack Reed (D-RI), John Hickenlooper (D-CO), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Martin Heinrich (D-NM), and Chris Coons (D-DE).

The legislation is supported by AFL-CIO, AFSCME, American College of Emergency Physicians, American Federation of Teachers, American Nephrology Nurses Association, American Nurses Association, American Physical Therapy Association, American Public Health Association, Association of Women's Health, Obstetric, and Neonatal Nurses, Emergency Nurses Association, IMPACT in Healthcare, International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM Union), Maryland Chapter of American College of Emergency Physicians, National Association of Emergency Medical Technicians, National Association of Social Workers, National Nurses United, PhilaPOSH, Public Citizen, and the United Steelworkers.

"No nurse should have to fear for their safety while caring for patients. Yet, workplace violence remains a persistent and escalating crisis in health care, putting both providers and patients at risk," says Jennifer Mensik Kennedy, PhD, RN, NEA-BC, FAAN, President of the American Nurses Association. "We know that health care and social service workers are five times as likely to suffer a workplace violence injury than workers overall, and one in four nurses report being physically assaulted. The Workplace Violence Prevention for Health Care and Social Service Workers Act is a necessary and urgent step toward ensuring that all health care professionals have the safeguards they need. We urge Congress to act now to pass this critical legislation and protect those who dedicate their lives to caring for others." 

“Violence at work is something emergency department nurses are all too familiar with, and that shouldn’t be the case. For that reason, meaningful solutions that mitigate and reduce workplace violence in health care are long overdue," said Emergency Nurses Association President Ryan Oglesby, PhD, MHA, RN, CEN, CFRN, NEA-BC. “The Workplace Violence Prevention for Health Care and Social Service Workers Act has been an ENA Legislative priority for years. Thank you to Sen. Baldwin and Rep. Courtney for their continued efforts to bring this legislation forward to help improve workplace violence prevention plans that keep the safety of health care staff and patients at the forefront.”

“I want to thank Congressman Joe Courtney and Senator Baldwin for leading this very important piece of legislation intended to improve the safety and well-being of those tasked with our health and well-being,” said IAM Union International President Brian Bryant. “IAM Healthcare represents thousands of healthcare professionals across the nation. Worker safety equals patient safety, and the Workplace Violence Prevention for Health Care and Social Services Workers Act is a step in the right direction for ensuring these heroes are protected as healthcare corporations fail to implement effective violence prevention measures.”

“Nurses need federal lawmakers to take swift action to protect us and our patients from preventable violence,” said Nancy Hagans, RN and president of National Nurses United. “For years, employers have refused to work with us to implement workplace violence prevention plans and to address the staffing crisis that creates the conditions for workplace violence. Congress can support frontline health care workers by requiring employers to invest in proven measures to prevent violence in our workplaces. We applaud Rep. Courtney and Sen. Baldwin for reintroducing this critical legislation that will save so many lives. Studies have shown that the most effective way to reduce health care violence is to have a plan in place before violence occurs. Nurses across the country urge Congress to use its power to save lives and swiftly pass the Workplace Violence Prevention for Health Care and Social Service Workers Act.”

“Public Citizen congratulates Representative Joe Courtney and Senator Tammy Baldwin on the reintroduction of the ‘Workplace Violence Prevention for Healthcare and Social Service Workers Act,’ said Juley Fulcher, Worker Health and Safety Advocate, Public Citizen. “The committed work of our physical and mental healthcare workers is invaluable to the wellbeing of our families and communities. Healthcare workers throughout the United States, often working long hours for limited pay, bear the brunt of understandable patient and family frustrations with a health care system that increasingly limits access to affordable health care. No worker should ever face violence at the workplace, especially not those laboring to care for our bodies and minds.”

“Workplace violence is a preventable scourge that impacts millions of frontline health care workers and their patients every day. Our nurses, health techs, social service workers and other professionals deserve much better than their current reality. They take care of us when we need them—and devote their careers to looking after the aging, the sick and the injured—yet they’re still, after all these years, fighting for basic, enforceable safety standards,” said American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten. “That’s why the AFT launched our Code Red campaign to tackle violence, secure safe patient limits and improve the quality of care patients receive; and it’s why this bill is so crucial. I thank Rep. Joe Courtney and Sen. Tammy Baldwin for introducing this bill and urge its quick passage.”

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