25 Alarming US Nursing Shortage Statistics [2023]: How Many Nurses Are In The US? - Zippia (2024)

Nursing shortage research summary. Nurses are the foundation of the global healthcare field. However, in the past few years, we’ve crawled toward a massive nursing shortage in the United States and around the world. It’s projected that over the next decade, this shortage will only worsen, and it won’t be long until we’re lacking millions of nurses.

To find out more about just how dire the nursing shortage issue is in the US, we’ve gathered a comprehensive list of the latest statistics. According to our extensive research:

• 4.7 million nurses are expected to retire by 2030

• 13 million nurses are needed worldwide over the next ten years to slow the shortage

• California has the most severe nursing shortage, with a projected shortage of 44,500 nurses by 2030

• 55% of registered nurses are over the age of 50

• 1.2 million new nurses are needed by 2030 to address the shortage

• 13% of newly licensed RNs change their job after only one year

• 37% of new RNs report wanting to change their job after only one year

For further analysis, we broke down the data in the following ways:
Current Nursing Workforce | New Nurses and Nursing Students | State | Projections | Global

Nursing shortage by current nursing workforce

The current nursing workforce has been largely impacted by resignations and retiring during the COVID-19 pandemic. Most nurses are older than you might expect, and this puts the nursing industry in a precarious position. To learn more about the current state of the nursing shortage, we’ve gathered a few interesting facts:

• There are currently more than 4.2 million registered nurses in the United States

• The average age of American nurses is 52 years old

• 86% of nurses in the United States are women, and 14% are men

• The average annual nurse turnover rate was 25.9% in 2022

Nursing shortage by new nurses and nursing students

Interest in nursing programs has been increasing, though not necessarily at a fast enough rate to counter the nursing shortage. Here are some interesting statistics about new nurses and nursing students:

• Enrollment in nursing programs increased by 5.6% from 2019 to 2020.

  In 2020, there were around 250,000 new nursing students pursuing their careers.

• In 2021, 91,000 qualified applicants were turned away from nursing school.

  That’s 13.75% more than the 80,407that were turned away in 2019. These individuals were turned away from nursing programs in the United States because there wasn’t enough faculty, classroom space, or money in the budget to accommodate more people.

Nursing shortage by state

The nursing shortage has impacted some states more than others. Depending on where you live, you may have felt the effects of the nursing shortage more than someone else. Curious on the states that have been most effected? Consider these facts:

• As of 2022, the top five states with the biggest hospital staffing shortages are New Mexico, Vermont, Rhode Island, West Virginia, and Arizona.

  New Mexico has by far the worst hospital staffing shortage today. In New Mexico, half of all hospitals report having a staffing shortage. In Vermont, this percentage drops a bit to 47%, but not by much. Followed by 42% for Rhode Island, 41% for West Virginia, and 40% for Arizona.

• As of 2022, the top five states with the least severe nursing shortages are Nevada, Utah, South Dakota, Idaho, and Texas.

  Nevada seems to struggle the least with hospital staffing. Right now, 0% of hospitals in Nevada report being short on staff. Those percentages rise a little bit to 2% in Utah, 3% in South Dakota, 4% in Idaho, and 4% in Texas.

  See Also

  The U.S. Nursing Shortage: A State-by-State Breakdown | NurseJournal.orgWhy Tenured Nurses are Leaving the Nursing Profession15+ Nursing Burnout Statistics [2023]: The Shocking Truth About Nursing - ZippiaBest States for Nurses to Work and Live in 2023 | PRN Healthcare

• The states projected to have the biggest nursing shortages by 2030 are California, Texas, New Jersey, South Carolina, and Alaska.

  By 2030, it’s expected that Texas will need nearly 16,000 nurses to fill the gaps of its shortage. Similarly, New Jersey will need 11,400, South Carolina will need 10,400, and Alaska will require 5,400 nurses.

• California is projected to have 44,500 fewer nurses than it needs by 2030.

  California is expected to have the worst nursing shortage in the entire country over the next ten years. Comparatively, Texas is projected to have the second-largest nursing shortage by 2030. However, they’ll only be short by 15,900 nurses.

• The states projected to have the least severe nursing shortage by 2030 are Florida, Ohio, Virginia, New York, and Missouri.

  Florida is expected to have the least issues with nursing shortages through 2030. By 2030, Florida is actually projected to have a surplus of over 53,000 nursing staff.

Nursing shortage trends and projections

The nursing shortage has become slightly less severe as the pandemic wanes, but a lack of new nurses to replace retirees is still a concerning issue. Luckily, we’ve gathered all the essential nursing shortage trends and projections:

• Over 1 million registered nurses in the U.S. will leave the workforce by 2030

• There are 194,500 nursing job openings each year on average

• Employment of registered nurses is expected to grow by 9% through 2030

• By 2030, there are expected to be 4.54 million nurses in the United States

Global nursing shortage statistics

The nursing shortage not only impacts the US, but other countries around the world as well. Nursing has always been an in-demand role globally, but now nurses are needed more than ever before.

• Globally, 13 million nurses will be needed by 2030 to meet the world’s healthcare needs.

  There are currently 28 million nurses around the globe.

• Nurses make up 50% of the global healthcare workforce.

  Since nurses make up such a large portion of the healthcare system, it’s clear why a massive nursing shortage is such a big problem.

• 20% of National Nursing Associations worldwide report an increased rate of nursing shortages.

  Additionally, 90% of these NNAs are incredibly concerned about heavy workloads and insufficient resources brought about by nursing shortages. Many of these associations believe that the pandemic is largely to blame for nurses leaving the field.

Nursing shortage statistics FAQ

1. How big is the nursing shortage in the United States?

   The nursing shortage in the United States is huge, with some states lacking tens of thousands of nurses. Many hospitals are feeling the pressure of these shortages. For example, New Mexico reported that 50% of the hospitals in their state had fewer nurses than they needed.

2. What is causing the current nursing shortage?

   Mounting stress from the COVID-19 pandemic, an aging workforce, and diminished resources to educate the nurses of tomorrow have caused the current nursing shortage. While there are a lot of factors pushing the nursing shortage, it all comes down to the fact that way more nurses are leaving the industry than entering.

   The pressures of the job are making the field less appealing to the new generation. Plus, most nurses today are over the age of 50 and planning to retire over the next ten years.

3. How many nurses quit in the first year?

   Around 17.5% of newly-licensed nurses quit within their first year, according to a study completed in 2014. The same study found that approximately 33.5% of nurses end up quitting within the second year of their first job.

   See Also

   18-Step Exit Strategy to Successfully Leave Nursing

4. How can the nursing shortage be fixed?

   There’s no quick and easy solution to fixing the nursing shortage. There simply needs to be more people going to nursing school and becoming nurses over the next decade.

   There will need to be more resources allocated to nursing programs across the United States to facilitate this need for nurses. Additionally, there must be more incentives to join the field to attract new nurses.

5. Where is the highest nursing shortage?

   California has the highest nursing shortage in the country. By 2030, it’s expected that California will be in need of over 44,000 nurses. This could have dire implications for the medical facilities and their patients.

6. What is the average age of nurses?

   The average age of nurses in the United States is 52. In fact, a lack of young nurses is becoming a huge threat to the stability of the nurse population, as only 14.8% of RNs in the US are under 30 years old.

Conclusion

Nurses are the backbone of the healthcare system. They make up 50% of the worldwide global healthcare workforce. However, recently there’s been a concerning shortage in the number of available nurses. Over the next ten years, it’s predicted that the world will need 13 million new nurses to slow the growing shortage.

California has the worst nursing shortage in the United States. It’s predicted that by 2030, California will be in need of over 44,000 nurses. Other states with major hospital staff shortages include New Mexico, Vermont, Rhode Island, West Virginia, and Arizona.

This problem will likely only worsen with time because nearly five million nurses are expected to retire by 2030. It makes sense considering the average age of registered nurses in the United States is 52. More than half of all American registered nurses are older than 50. It’s also been more difficult to get new nurses out in the world.

In 2019, over 80,000 qualified nursing applicants were turned away from nursing school because there wasn’t enough faculty or resources to teach them.

It isn’t all doom and gloom, though. There are nearly 200,000 nursing jobs open each year, and employment of registered nurses is expected to grow by 9% annually through 2030.

References

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