MNORN: Minnesota Organization of Registered Nurses

04/02/2026

The author of this blog reflects the impact of a caring nurse - making her decide to become a nurse herself. The actions that we take as nurses, can have a lasting impact on our patients and their families....

Often, the simplest questions lead to the greatest moments of reflection and growth. While serving on a recent panel discussion, I was asked how I knew I wanted to be a nurse? The question offered me the opportunity to reflect on the butterfly effect of one nurse’s actions on the future of

02/04/2026

The U.S. Department of Education proposed rule
related to the implementation of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act excludes nursing from the professional degree designation, a decision that contradicts workforce realities, federal policy
and basic economics.

The Tri-Council for Nursing calls on all nurses to submit public comments requesting the inclusion of post-baccalaureate nursing degrees (MSN, DNP, Ph.D.) explicitly in the list of professional degrees before the March 2 deadline.

The Tri-Council for Nursing calls on all nurses to submit public comments requesting the inclusion of post-baccalaureate nursing degrees (MSN, DNP, Ph.D.) explicitly in the list of professional degrees before the March 2 deadline.

Read the council’s full statement here: https://americannurs.es/tri-council-statement

01/30/2026

Powerful blog in Nursology today, written by MNORN member Katie Clark. She writes of her experience taking care of and working with Somali Americans who have been victimized by the current administration.

Katie reminds us that "Collective action is more than providing care as a nurse to the individuals in this community. Yes, we have had to rethink how we deliver care or distribute food safely, but we also must share these political realities beyond our immediate circles. We must engage policymakers, challenge the system, and work to prevent this from continuing. And, we must stay beyond this crisis to support community members when these realities end.

They don’t need an outsider to fix this for them. They need to know they matter, that they are seen, and that they will endure through their inherent strengths, collective agency, and political will. And now they have requested us to change our narrative and call them what they rightly are -Somali Americans. Naming Somali Americans is not semantic. It is a refusal of criminalization, foreignness, and disposability.

Contributor – Kathleen “Katie” Clark, DNP, RN Witness – Why we cannot look away I write this as a nurse educator in Minneapolis, where federal immigration enforcement has be…

01/26/2026

In this blog, we are reminded of our obligation, as nurses following our Code of Ethics, that we need to speak out against injustice and advocate for the dignity of all.

Included are some actions, we as nurses can take, no matter our views on immigration. These include:
- Provide nursing care and material support for your neighbors who are at risk – those who cannot leave their homes to get groceries, or go to school, or show up for work.
- Bring your best mental health skills to assist those who are terrorized, especially the children, to offer support in minimizing the emotional trauma they bear.
- Wear a whistle around your neck, signalling that you stand ready to respond and protect against any act of terror in your community.
- Speak up in any group gathering, formal or informal, stating your opposition to real or potential acts of injustice, and invite your colleagues to join you in taking nonviolent action.
- Contact leaders in your local , regional, and nursing organizations and associations, and urge them to create official position statements and organized action in your communities.
- Contact your local, regional and national elected officials and urge them to use their political influence to oppose any policy, action or budgetary allocation that enables a continuation of acts of harm or terror, committed by people representing the U.S. government within your community.
- Post on social media your opposition against any terrorizing . Post your support for the communities being attacked.
- Join groups in your community, no matter how small, who are organizing to protect your vulnerable neighbors.

Many of these actions were exactly what Alex Pretti was doing when he was killed on Saturday morning. What better way to honor his legacy than to continue his work?

"Courage is contagious. When any of us speak out, or take even the smallest of actions, we inspire others to do the same."

Alex Pretti, ICU nurse assassinated by ICE on January 24, 2026 At our January Nursology.net Advisory Team Zoom meeting, we heard from a colleague who lives and works in the great city of Minneapoli…

01/26/2026

Alex Pretti, a registered nurse, was killed in a horrifying shooting at the hands of federal law enforcement. Alex’s life mattered, and the American Nurses Association (ANA) denounces his killing and the circumstances surrounding it.

We ask all nurses to visit https://ow.ly/sGMn50Y3L57 to send a letter to your members of Congress. Let them know that nurses demand immediate action.

01/26/2026

From today’s vigil for Alex Pretti. Thanks to Patrick Soria for all he did to help organize this tribute.

01/24/2026

Dear MNORN Members,
Today, our nursing community is grieving. We have lost a fellow registered nurse to an act of violence connected to immigration enforcement. Regardless of where each of us stands on the issues surrounding this moment, the loss of a nurse, a caregiver, a colleague, a human being cuts us deeply.

This message is not about politics. It is about mourning a life taken too soon and honoring the calling we all share.

As nurses, we understand loss in a way others may not understand. We know how quickly life can change, how fragile safety can feel, and how pain reaches far beyond one individual to families, coworkers, patients, and communities. When one nurse is lost, all of us feel it.

In moments like this, our professional values guide us. We lead with compassion. We hold space for grief. We speak with care. We respect one another, even when perspectives differ. And we remember that at the center of this tragedy is a human life and a nurse who chose a profession devoted to healing.

Please be gentle with yourselves and with one another in the days ahead. Check in on each other. Allow room for sorrow, confusion, and reflection. If you are struggling please reach out, no one needs or should carry this alone.

On behalf of the Minnesota Organization of Registered Nurses, we extend our deepest sympathy to the nurse’s family, friends, coworkers, and all who are grieving this loss. We honor their life by continuing to practice nursing with integrity, compassion, and respect for every human being.

Thank you for the way you continue to show up for your patients, your colleagues, and one another especially on days like this, when it can be so hard.

With care and solidarity,
Cami Peterson-DeVries, MNORN President

01/23/2026

Thankful for the nurses who are caring for our frightened neighbors right now - running underground clinics and reassuring a scared 12 year old girl.

Some immigrants in Minneapolis have said they're scared to go out because of ICE agents across the city. When one 12-year-old needed to run an errand, it triggered a network of underground volunteers.

01/08/2026

The unilateral move by the federal government to change the childhood immunization schedule did not follow previous processes that include intensive scientific review by an advisory committee.

In order to provide Minnesotans with clear, science-based information about immunization, MDH is updating its website and other immunization guidance to follow the immunization schedules put out by professional medical associations.

MDH’s immunization recommendations will now align with these professional medical associations:
- The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) immunization schedule when vaccinating children and adolescents from birth through 18 years of age.
- The American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) immunization schedule when vaccinating adults 19 years of age and older.
- The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) maternal immunization guidance for recommended vaccines during pregnancy.

Minnesota has previously shifted away from the federal CDC schedule for COVID-19 and hepatitis B vaccines. This action extends that approach across all vaccines.

Aligning immunization recommendations with those of medical professional associations will help save lives, prevent infectious diseases, and ensure a simpler, more consistent approach for providers, parents and the public.

https://content.govdelivery.com/bulletins/gd/MNMDH-403664e?fbclid=IwY2xjawPMtl1leHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZBAyMjIwMzkxNzg4MjAwODkyAAEeRgtch__RZ6bJ6PJrLyrYafQWyZcdJKJtrT3PA9WRFr3guuIlAQTqrt1IoNo_aem_12WRDEmwT8iH_p8DrDhCBQ

News Release: MDH aligns immunization recommendations with professional medical associations; breaks with CDC recs Minnesota Department of Health sent this bulletin at 01/08/2026 09:40 AM CST MDH aligns immunization recommendations with professional medical associations; breaks with CDC recs The Min...

12/16/2025

"Over the past few weeks, many nurses have watched headlines and social media posts claim that “Trump made nursing no longer a profession.”

That line is alarming—but it isn’t accurate.

Nursing is still a licensed profession defined by statute, governed by boards of nursing, and recognized by every hospital system in the country. Our scope of practice hasn’t changed. Our credentials haven’t changed. Our professional identity hasn’t changed.

What has changed is a technical federal loan category—one that now places graduate nursing programs in the same bucket as standard academic master’s programs rather than alongside medicine, dentistry, or law. For some future nurses, that shift could affect how they pay for school. For others, the change may barely be noticeable. The details matter, and the math matters even more."

What new federal “professional degree” loan caps actually mean for graduate nursing students Over the past few weeks, many nurses have watched headlines and social media posts claim that “Trump made nursing no longer a profession.” That line is alarming—but it isn’t accurate. Nursing is ...

12/15/2025

Pushback is mounting against new federal student-loan reforms passed under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, with lawmakers warning the policy could further strain the nursing workforce.

In a Dec. 12 letter to Nicholas Kent, the undersecretary of education, a bipartisan group of more than 140 members of Congress urged officials to reconsider how advanced nursing programs are classified under the new rules.

The changes eliminated the Grad PLUS program and created new lifetime borrowing caps. Under the legislation, professional degree students can borrow up to $200,000, but the Education Department’s proposed definition of such a degree would not include nursing, subjecting graduate nursing students to a lower $100,000 lifetime cap. The definition was adopted during a rulemaking session in early November in which a department-convened advisory committee reached consensus on the legislation’s student loan provisions.

The Education Department plans to draft a proposed rule reflecting the committee’s recommendation and release it for public comment, with a final rule expected in 2026.

In the letter, lawmakers said not including post-baccalaureate nursing degrees from the professional category could limit access to advanced training programs and further harm staffing shortages, especially in primary care, anesthesia and rural health settings.

They argued that advanced nursing programs require licensure and meet the department’s own criteria for professional degrees, and warned that lower borrowing limits could discourage enrollment and restrict the pipeline of advanced practice nurses.

“Classifying these programs as graduate programs would result in these students having to take out additional student loans to cover the remainder of their tuition, which will limit the ability for students to complete their advanced degree,” the letter said. “At a time when our nation is facing a healthcare shortage, especially in primary care, now is not the time to cut off the student pipeline to these programs.”