Earlier this week, the Joint Committee on Health Care Financing held a hearing that included discussion of H1211 and S747 An Act Relative to the Nurse Licensure Compact in Massachusetts (NLC). MSCA is pleased to have joined partners including the Massachusetts Health and Hospital Association and the American Nurses Association in submitting testimony in strong support of the NLC. Across the country 41 states participate in the NLC, making Massachusetts an outlier. The NLC enables a qualified RN or LPN to hold a nursing license in their state of residence, and practice nursing in the other states participating in the compact without having to get individual licenses in each state. In its testimony, MSCA urged Massachusetts to join the NLC to minimize the risk of losing qualified and credentialed nurses to bordering states including Maine, Rhode Island, New Hampshire and Vermont who all participate in the compact. At the hearing, the Massachusetts Nurses Association testified in opposition to the NLC, citing concerns that the compact will not impact the vacancy rate for nurses and emphasizing the need for retention strategies that address nurse burnout.