Minnesota nurse staffing bill that exempted Mayo Clinic fails to pass 

Photo: Cliff Hawkins/Getty Images

On Monday, a nurse-staffing bill, which exempted the Mayo Clinic, failed to get legislative approval in Minnesota.

Some legislators, especially within the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party, found the "Keeping Nurses at the Bedside Act" unpalatable because of the alleged exemption of the Mayo Clinic, the state's largest employer, according to the Minnesota Legislature. Instead, the Minnesota House passed a conference committee report called the "Nurse and Patient Safety Act." 

Mayo Clinic got the exemption after allegedly sending an email to the Office of Governor Tim Walz threatening to move billions of dollars in future investments out of state if the bill included the staffing provision, according to the Minnesota Reformer. Walz's office did not respond to a request for the email.

All other hospitals would have been required to form staffing committees made up equally of direct care workers and hospital leaders. Supporters believe these staffing plans would have helped alleviate the exodus from the profession seen in recent years, the report said.

Mayo responded to a request for comment with this statement from President and CEO Dr. Gianrico Farrugia: "Throughout the legislative session, Mayo Clinic remained steadfast in our position to ensure we can continue to meet the needs of our patients and staff and lead the transformation of healthcare. Mayo Clinic would like to express our gratitude to everyone who embraced that commitment with us. In particular, we are thankful to Gov. Walz and his team for their exceptional partnership and leadership. Gov. Walz, Speaker Hortman and Majority Leader Dziedzic have expressed firm support for Mayo Clinic and for our desire to grow and invest in healthcare and our communities. We share the goal of making Minnesota the state that leads the future transformation of healthcare. 
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We remain grateful for our nurses, and all healthcare workers, who serve patients with dedication and compassion every day," Farrugia continued. "We share the governor's and legislature's commitment to continue addressing the challenges facing nurses -- including nationwide staffing shortages and increasing violence against healthcare workers -- just as we remain committed to pushing the boundaries of innovation to cure, connect and transform health care for patients in Minnesota and around the world."

FINANCIALS

The Mayo Clinic recently released first quarter financials showing a gain in net operating income.

For Q1 ending March 31, the health system generated net operating income of $149 million on $4.27 billion in revenue, a 3.5% operating margin, according to the unaudited condensed consolidated financial report filed with the Electronic Municipal Market Access.

Operating expenses, especially for labor, continued to cut into profits. Expenses were $4.12 billion for the three month period ending March 31, which represents an increase of 9% over 2022. 

At $2.44 billion, salaries and benefits increased 7.7% over the prior year. The total comprised 59% of total expenses, despite having pension and disability expenses at $80 million lower than the prior-year quarter due to a significant increase in the discount rate, the financial report said.  

Outpatient visits, surgeries, admissions and patient days were higher than both 2022 and 2021, reflecting sustained strong demand for services, Mayo Clinic said.  

"Mayo Clinic is pleased with the strong start represented by these first quarter results," Mayo Clinic said in the report. "Strong volumes, investment gains and favorable expense management all contributed to the quarter's performance. In parallel, we continue to advance the elements of our Bold. Forward. strategic plan with its vision to Cure, Connect and Transform healthcare."

Mayo Clinic has $16 billion in annual revenues and more than 76,000 employees. It has campuses in Rochester, Minnesota; Phoenix and Scottsdale, Arizona; and Jacksonville, Florida, along with dozens of locations in Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Iowa. 

Twitter: @SusanJMorse
Email the writer: SMorse@himss.org