American Nurses Association (ANA)

The American Nurses Association (ANA) is the only full-service professional organization representing the interests of the nation’s 3.1 million registered nurses through its constituent and state nurses associations and its organizational affiliates. The ANA advances the nursing profession by fostering high standards of nursing practice, promoting the rights of nurses in the workplace, projecting a positive and realistic view of nursing, and by lobbying the Congress and regulatory agencies on health care issues affecting nurses and the public.

Mission Statement:

Nurses advancing our profession to improve health for all.

Statement of Purpose:

The American Nurses Association (ANA) is the only full-service professional organization representing the nation’s entire registered nurse population. From the halls of Congress and federal agencies to the board rooms, hospitals and other health care facilities, ANA is the strongest voice for the nursing profession. It is headquartered in Silver Spring, Maryland.

ANA represents the interests of the nation’s 3.1 million registered nurses through its constituent and state nurses associations and its organizational affiliates.

Dedicated to ensuring that an adequate supply of highly-skilled and well-educated nurses is available, ANA is committed to meeting the needs of nurses as well as health care consumers. ANA advances the nursing profession by fostering high standards of nursing practice, promoting the economic and general welfare of nurses in the workplace, projecting a positive and realistic view of nursing, and by lobbying the Congress and regulatory agencies on health care issues affecting nurses and the general public.

ANA is at the forefront of policy initiatives pertaining to health care reform. Among the priority issues are: a restructured health care system that delivers primary health care in community based settings; an expanded role for registered nurses and advanced practice nurses in the delivery of basic and primary health care; obtaining federal funding for nurse education and training; and helping to change and improve the health care environment.

Through ANA’s political and legislative program, the association has taken firm positions on a range of issues including Medicare reform, patients’ rights, appropriate staffing, the importance of safer needle devices, whistleblower protections for health care workers, adequate reimbursement for health care services and access to health care. ANA and its state nurses associations’ lobbying efforts are contributing to health care reform on both state and national levels.

The ANA-affiliated organizations include: