The purpose of this document is to discuss the legislative process and healthcare lobbying in the United States of America. Before a law is passed and implemented in America at either the state or federal level, it often must go through a very lengthy legislative process, except in the case of an executive order. And, without the skills and experience of lobbying strategies, the idea that it could become law might not even get to the level of a bill, let alone become law. It is important for us as nurses to understand the legislative process, become familiar with the lobbying process, and act early and promptly to defend our interests and help prevent any negative impact that any idea or bill that may become law could have on the healthcare system . nursing profession. Although our primary mission is to provide great care to our patients, Florence Nightingale taught us (Burkhardt & Nathaniel 2008, 3rd Ed. P18-19) that if we do not have legislative power many of our ideas can be oppressed, thus preventing the profession from prosper. Being well organized as a profession is very important, as many of the rules and regulations that govern us often come from a legislative process. According to Burckhardt and Nathaniel, we nurses are almost 3 million (Abood, S. January 2007). In addition to our advocacy capabilities, we must deploy our lobbying and legislative capabilities to participate in the process and help protect the legitimacy of the profession. While many legislators may have advisors with some medical knowledge. However, many of these legislators do not have experience in the medical field, particularly nursing. We must get involved, make our presence felt, not only through voting, but through all the paper preparation. After a nurse has finished his or her regular shift, being forced to work overtime may leave him or her greater right to make medical errors, partly due to fatigue and tiredness, consequently exposing the patient to a high risk of complications. Many other states have enacted laws and regulations to help prevent this practice, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, New York, Texas, California to name a few (ANA 2015) My position, and undoubtedly that of many other nursing positions, is that Ohio lawmakers need to pass laws to stop this mandatory overtime practice for nurses in the state. Otherwise, Ohio will continue to leave both nurses and patients at risk. The cost of any medical errors or errors resulting from nurses' fatigue and exhaustion can be unprecedented. We need to act now, to protect the patient and our nursing staff in the state of Ohio.