NPs vote to form new national membership organization

AUSTIN, Texas — The American Academy of Nurse Practitioners and the American College of Nurse Practitioners announced that they are moving forward with plans to consolidate effective Jan. 1, 2013.



The combined organization will be known as the American Association of Nurse Practitioners or AANP. With approximately 40,000 members, AANP will serve as the largest professional membership organization in the country for nurse practitioners of all specialties.



Leaders from both the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners and the American College of Nurse Practitioners will play key roles in governing the new organization.  As of Nov. 19, David Hebert, who has been CEO of the American College of Nurse Practitioners, began serving as CEO of AANP. Angela Golden, currently serving as president of the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners, will retain her position through June 2013. Ken Miller, currently the American College of Nurse Practitioners' president-elect, will become the co-president with Golden at the AANP conference in June 2013.



The consolidation comes at a time when fewer physicians are pursuing primary care medicine and nurse practitioners are playing an increasingly critical role in providing access to primary, acute and specialty care. This is even more urgent with the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act moving forward, adding 30 million Americans to the rolls of the insured.



By consolidating, the new AANP is striving to add a strong, unified voice to the growing movement working to ensure nurse practitioners can practice to their fullest potential.



"The nurse practitioner community has made it clear that they support this alliance and share our vision for one entity that represents the very best of what we have to offer as health care providers," stated Angela Golden, current president of the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners. "Coming together better serves our members and benefits our patients who need nurse practitioners now more than ever."



"Today's health care environment demands more efficiency and innovation as we look to control costs and improve outcomes," stated Jill Olmstead, president of the American College of Nurse Practitioners. "This consolidation exemplifies how collaboration and future-forward thinking can bring about positive changes across the health care spectrum."