U.S. Representative for Iowa’s Third District Cindy Axne (D) recently helped pass a bipartisan bill to protect health care and social service workers.

House Resolution 1309, known as the Workplace Violence Prevention for Health Care and Social Service Workers Act seeks to protect this sector by working with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to require employers to develop and implement a workplace violence prevention plan; as well as shielding victims from retaliation for reporting violent incidents.

Axne says in her time as Congresswoman she’s heard countless stories from health care workers across her District, sometimes at fear for their life, “Healthcare and social service workers suffer 69% of all workplace violence injuries, so that’s a pretty bad number and we’ve got to make sure that we protect them. So I was really happy and proud to vote and pass this act and make sure that we provide the protection that our healthcare and social service workers need. They’re doing an incredible job to support folks in our community.”

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, in 2016 health care and social service workers were nearly five times more likely to experience violence on the job as compared to other fields. Since passing in the House the bill now sits in the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions.