U.S. Senator Heidi Heitkamp toured the Minot State University Department of Nursing Program Tuesday to discuss the nursing shortage and other issues facing rural health care.

“The nursing program at Minot State is a great example of the forward-thinking approach we need to address the nursing shortage in North Dakota and across rural America,” said Heitkamp, co-chair of the bipartisan Rural Health Caucus. “Unfortunately, the administration’s budget would drastically cut federal funding for critical programs that support nursing training in rural areas, including many programs across North Dakota. Our state needs a robust health care workforce, and I’m fighting against these cuts.”

The budget recently released by the administration would cut more than $1.4 billion from health care workforce programs at Health Resources & Services Administration, the primary federal agency tasked with improving access to health care in rural areas, Heitkamp said. The cuts to HRSA, including Nursing Workforce Development programs, could put federal funding at risk for the North Dakota Department of Health and university nursing programs that receive HSRA grants.

Heitkamp also has introduced bipartisan bills aimed at improving rural health care delivery and service.