TRAVEL NURSING AGENCIES DRAW LAWMAKERS’ SCRUTINY

IN THE 40 YEARS THAT JENNIE KAHN HAS WORKED AS A registered nurse, the last two have been by far the hardest.

That fact isn’t surprising—COVID-19 has transformed health care facilities, including Thomas Health’s hospital system in Charleston, W.Va., where Kahn works—but the reasons may be. Part of why these past two years have been so punishing, Kahn says, is that hospital nursing staffs have been subject to extraordinary churn as thousands of nurses have quit their staff positions to become travel nurses, working on temporary contracts—a job for which the pay is often two to four times higher.

This turnover has triggered a costly feedback loop: Hospitals, facing shortages of staff nurses, spend a mint hiring contract