ST. PAUL, Minn. – Mayo Clinic’s heavy-handed attempt to maintain 100% control of nurse staffing at its Minnesota hospitals prevailed. Governor Tim Walz and Democratic leadership in the Legislature have agreed to exempt Mayo from a proposed law requiring hospitals to give nurses a place at the table in determining bedside staffing levels. Mayo had threatened to call off a $5 billion expansion in Rochester – and spend the money in Florida or Arizona, where it also has large operations – if the Keeping Nurses at the Bedside bill became law. The extortion, euphemized as a “carve out,” applies only to Mayo. Every other hospital in the state will need to include nurses in staffing decisions.
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