Emergency Nurses Week

Floor Speech

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Mr. MERKLEY. Mr. President, on behalf of myself and Mr. Wicker, I rise today to celebrate Emergency Nurses Week and all of the nurses throughout the country and around the world working day in and day out on the front lines to care for those in need.

More than 2 years ago now, the unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic turned our emergency rooms into battle zones against the virus virtually overnight, and our nurses fought that battle every single day. They fought it when they were understaffed and didn't have personal protective equipment. They fought it through a rise in violence in their workplaces. They fought it as tireless advocates for their patients, even while risking their own health and the well-being of their own families. And they fought it through exhaustion and burnout. These challenges came on top of an already existing shortage of trained and qualified nurses, a raging opioid epidemic, and a mental health crisis--and now a fentanyl crisis and the monkeypox outbreak.

Our nurses are heroes, and throughout the week of October 9, we will join together to honor and celebrate their heroic work. They deserve all the respect, admiration, and support of a grateful nation--not just for 1 week, but indeed, every day of the year.

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