Gov. Deval Patrick on Monday quietly signed a bill setting nurse staffing levels inside intensive-care units at one nurse per one patient, depending on the stability of the patient. The private bill-signing was attended by state Rep. Denise Garlick, a Needham Democrat and registered nurse, and Donna Kelly-Williams, president of the Massachusetts Nurses Association, a union that had been pushing for two ballot questions on nurse-patient ratios and CEO pay and hospital financial transparency. Patrick's signature on the bill (H 4228) means the union will drop both initiative petitions, which were headed for the November ballot.
