June 17, 2024 – The American Academy of Ambulatory Care Nursing (AAACN) and the Commission for Nurse Reimbursement (CNR) today unveiled a landmark strategic partnership. This alliance focuses on advancing and implementing nursing value demonstration and revenue creation and will significantly impact the healthcare industry. The collaboration will involve policy and rule changes, testing various models, and establishing feasibility tests from nurses across ambulatory care specialties. The ultimate goal of this partnership is to lead the nursing profession in achieving reimbursement and demonstrable value creation.
"We are thrilled to partner with CNR in this important endeavor," said Stephanie Witwer, Ph.D., RN, FAAN, President of AAACN." Nurses play a critical role in healthcare delivery, and their value must be recognized and compensated appropriately. This partnership will allow us to explore new and innovative ways to demonstrate the value of nursing care and ensure that payers reimburse healthcare delivery systems fairly for nursing services."
Executive Director Melissa Mills of CNR expressed her enthusiasm for the partnership, stating, "We are excited to work with AAACN to advance our shared vision of nursing reimbursement and value creation. We aim to develop and implement effective nursing reimbursement and billing models by pooling our collective expertise and resources. This partnership is a significant stride towards our mission of empowering nurses and ensuring recognition of their true value within the healthcare delivery system.”
This partnership comes just before the Commission’s inaugural Legislative Summit. Rachel Start and Cynthia Murray will present a session about Reimbursement in the Outpatient Setting as part of a day-long conversation about modernizing reimbursement structures for nursing and moving away from a cost-minimization environment that does not deliver on value. The event hosts legislators, policymakers, and nursing executives and aims to explore new models aimed at stabilizing and sustaining the nursing workforce.
About AAACN: The American Academy of Ambulatory Care Nursing is the professional association for nurses and nurse leaders specializing in community and ambulatory care settings. AAACN’s tagline is “Shaping Care Where Life Happens,” its vision is to realize “A Healthier World through Nursing Excellence, Leadership, and Innovation, Revolutionizing Healthcare.” The AAACN Strategic Plan is focused on the following domains: 1. To Build the Science of Ambulatory Care Nursing, 2. Expand Expertise and Empower Excellence, and to 3. Use our Expertise to Transform Health For People and Communities. Evidence is growing that shows Registered Nurses improve quality, safety, equitable access, and service and lower overall costs in ambulatory care settings. AAACN focuses on educating payers, legislators, and other decision-makers about the critical contributions of the RN in improving the health of our nation.
About CNR: The Commission for Nurse Reimbursement, founded in 2023, aims to modernize reimbursement for nursing services across all areas of the healthcare continuum. CNR acknowledges that the current cost-minimization work environment is creating significant barriers to retaining nurses at the bedside and recognizes that the nearly 100-year-old healthcare reimbursement practice of nursing being an overhead cost to care delivery is a substantial component of the nursing crisis.
Media Contacts:
Commission for Nurse Reimbursement:
Melissa Mills, Executive Director
melissa@commissionfornursereimbursement.com
American Academy of Ambulatory Care Nursing
Stephanie Witwer, Ph.D., RN, NEA-BC, FAAN, President, AAACN
witwer.stephanie@mayo.edu