On Monday, November 10, the Senate passed legislation to end the nation’s longest government shutdown. The legislation would fund Military Construction and Veterans Affairs, Agriculture, and the Legislative Branch for the remainder of fiscal year (FY) 2026 and provides a continuing resolution (CR) for the remainder of the government through January 30, 2026.

The end to this 42-day shutdown comes nearly a week after more than 220 AACN members travelled to Capitol Hill to advocate for protecting federal infrastructure that supports the nursing workforce, investing in Title VIII Nursing Workforce Development Programs and the National Institute of Nursing Research, and passing the Title VIII Nursing Workforce Reauthorization Act of 2025 (S.1874/H.R.3593)

This funding bill not only ends the shutdown, but also included provisions that would ensure backpay for federal workers who were placed on furlough, prevent future layoffs through January 30, 2026, and reverse the reduction-in-force (RIF) actions taken since the beginning of the shutdown. AACN previously noted that employees in the Department of Health and Human Services, including within the Division of Nursing and Public Health, and the Department of Education received RIF notices in mid-October. With the passage of this legislation, those reductions are expected to be reversed, restoring critical support for our nation’s nursing schools, students, and faculty. The House is expected to vote on this bill later today.

In Case You Missed It

• On October 31, AACN signed onto a Nursing Community Coalition (NCC) letter to the Department of Education (ED), urging the Department’s Reimagining and Improving Student Education (RISE) Committee to explicitly include post-baccalaureate nursing programs in the regulatory definition of “professional degree programs” when implementing the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
• On October 31, AACN signed onto a letter along with a broad coalition of health profession, education and professional associations to ED and the RISE Committee asking that they adopt a consistent standard for defining "professional degrees," such as using CIP Code 51-Health Professions and Related Clinical Sciences.

View all updates from Policy Watch