Nurse practitioner associations merge

The American Academy of Nurse Practitioners and the American College of Nurse Practitioners were set to merge at the beginning of January. The newly created American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP) will have a membership of 40,000.

David Hebert, who was the chief executive officer of the American College of Nurse Practitioners and formerly chief lobbyist for the American Health Care Association, is now CEO of AANP.

The consolidation will give the group a stronger lobbying voice, officials said. Nurse practitioners have pushed to become a bigger part of the healthcare landscape. 

“The nurse practitioner community has made it clear that they support this alliance and share our vision for one entity that represents the very best of what we have to offer as healthcare providers,” said Angela Golden, DNP, FNP-C, FAANP, current president of the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners. 

The merge “exemplifies how collaboration and future-forward thinking can bring about positive changes across the healthcare spectrum,” said American College of Nurse Practitioners President Jill Olmstead, MSN, NP-C.