Still on the table at the State Capitol is the massive Health and Human Services Bill, including a provision to regulate the ratio of nurses to patients, cheered by many nurses but jeered by hospital administrators.
Yesterday, a conference committee carved out an exception for Mayo Clinic after the world renowned Rochester facility threatened to pull a billion dollar state investment off the table if they were included.
Earlier this week, Governor Walz was clear on where he stood.
"At this point and time, we want those investments in Minnesota, they need to be in Minnesota," said Walz. "Mayo is in Minnesota for a reason. We have the best educated workforce and best support of anywhere in the country. So we want to continue that."
In a press release, union nurses praised the amended bill overall but chided Governor Walz for siding with Mayo Clinic. Still, they say 90% of nurses in the state would be covered under the legislation.
House Speaker Melissa Hortman (DFL- Brooklyn Park) says the bill will have it's own conference committee. There was tension all week over the plan to exempt Mayo Clinic from the staffing requirements and Hortman says the bill morphed some to better meet the needs of all parties involved.
"So I think that that standalone conference committee will give that issue the space that it needs so the public clearly understands what we're doing with that bill, and what we're not talking about and not doing with that bill," Hortman said Thursday.
The bill requires all hospitals to have committees that set nurse staffing levels in the hope that will prevent worker burnout and preserve patient care and safety.