This chapter argues that nurses, some taking advantage of opportunities from federally funded initiatives themselves, provided access to care for the poor in rural communities and in migrant camps. Teaching nutrition and well baby care, dealing with epidemics, and promoting proper sanitation, nurses worked toward achieving a basic level of health despite difficult circumstances. In some instances, nurses collaborated with social workers and the Red Cross to respond to flood disasters; others worked beyond the boundaries of the traditional scope of nursing practice. The chapter describes nursing during the Great Depression. It discusses the crisis in unemployment of private-duty nurses and describes various new opportunities that presented to nurses in the 1930s. The chapter also focuses on opportunities for nurses provided by the federal government under the New Deal. Finally, it addresses developments in the field of anesthesia, national organization within the specialty and legal challenges to nurse anesthesia practice.