Nurses in Massachusetts are backing a new law that will ban mandatory overtime – a strategy used by hospitals to cut costs.

“Forcing nurses to work when they are exhausted endangers patients and leads to costly, preventable medical errors and complications,” said Donna Kelly-Williams, president of the Massachusetts Nurses Association/National Nurses United. “The practice of mandatory overtime is indefensible by any patient safety standard, and yet hospitals continue to increase their use of this practice.”