Healthcare Workplace Violence Prevention Act Passes PA House
Harrisburg, May 6th – The Act to Address Workplace Violence in the Healthcare Sector passed Pennsylvania House of Representatives and announced co-sponsors of the bill, Leanne Krueger and Bridget Kosierowski.
The bill would establish requirements to assist healthcare employers in preventing workplace violence and provide support and protection for employees when it is necessary to report potential threats or experience violence.
“Workplace violence is more common in the healthcare industry than in any other industry,” says Krueger of D-Delaware. “We have an obligation to ensure that those who care about us when we are sick or injured are given a safe, violence-free workplace, and our bill aims to do so.”
“The incidents of workplace violence reported by members of the Pennsylvania Staff Nurse Association and alliance experts jumped from 50% in 2021 to 66% in 2024,” Kosierowski said. D Rakawana. “It's unacceptable and preventable.”
Healthcare workers accounted for 73% of all non-fatal workplace injuries and illnesses due to violence in 2018, the most recent year when data was collected, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The bill is currently being sent to the Senate for consideration.
