Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey reallocated $12.3 million of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act to hire travel nurses to work in Alabama hospitals amid a national shortage, WHNT-TV reported.
In consultation with the Alabama Department of Public Health, Scott Harris, MD, the state health officer, determined the nursing shortage to be Alabama's most urgent need. ADPH will work with the Alabama Hospital Association to develop a recruitment process.
Alabama received about $1.9 billion from the federal CARES Act. The $12.3 million reallocation is from funds previously obligated but not reimbursed.