Would patient-limit law for nurses save lives, or cost billions?

Describing 12-hour shifts with no break for a meal or even a trip to the bathroom, hospital nurses who say they’re overloaded with patients are pushing for a new state law that would limit the number of people they care for at the same time. Nurses groups say the proposed mandate to set a maximum number of patients per nurse — between one and four, depending on the type of unit — would improve both working conditions for nurses and also patient safety.