House Bill 456 passed the House floor with an overwhelming number of “Yes” votes. In addition to the many “Yes” votes, the bill gained many new influential co-sponsors, now totaling 32 representatives. The bill – which would make Ohio the 19th state to prohibit nurse mandatory overtime – is another step closer to increasing safe nurse staffing in our state!

Where are we now?

Now the bill heads to the Senate where it will go through a similar process as it did in the House of Representatives.  HB 456 will be assigned to a Senate committee – most likely the Senate Health, Human Services, & Medicaid Committee, chaired by Senator David Burke.  The committee will hold several hearings where the bill’s sponsor, Representative Robert Sprague, will provide testimony to the committee of what the bill aims to achieve.  Additional hearings will be held where proponents and opponents have the opportunity to provide testimony on why they support or oppose HB 456.  If the bill has majority support after successive hearings, it will be voted on.  Once HB 456 is favorably voted out of the Senate Committee, it will head to the Senate floor for a full Senate vote.  If any changes are made to the bill during the Senate process, it will go back to the House for concurrence. After HB 456 passes both chambers, it will be sent to the Governor for a signature.  The new law will be filed with the Secretary of State for final enrollment and will become effective 91 days after the filing.

Take action:

• Visit ONA’s new Ohio Nurses’ Action Center to thank the Representatives who voted YES on HB 456
• Send in a testimonial for how the passage of HB 456 will change your life by visiting ONA’s Staffing page
• Attend ONA’s Advocacy Academy to learn about how to advocate for patients and our profession. Get trained as a Legislative Ambassador and connect with legislators at the grassroots level to speak up for safe, quality care!  Contact Lisa Walker at lwalker@ohnurses.org if interested.