KENTUCKY — Federal data from the National Institute of Health projects over 275,000 additional nurses will be needed in the United States by the year 2030. 

Earlier this fall, the Kentucky Hospital Association released a new report showing hospitals in our state face a shortage of nurses that is already affecting patient care and could lead to hospital closures.

The Kentucky Hospital Association’s report also states 22% of all nursing jobs in the state are unfilled, and another 14% of nurses are near retirement. Hospitals also paying more for travel nurses, with a projected increase of 1,014% this year compared to 2019.

“I’ve been in health care since the 70s. And the problem then I remember stating in a committee meeting, I think, last summer that the COVID pandemic did not create this problem, but what it did was push it off the cliff, because it’s been there for years. So really no new news came from this report. If anything, it just said expressed the magnitude of the problem, and it is a critical problem, not just hospitals, but the nursing homes, particularly in rural communities. So it’s been a challenge. I know it’s going to take over a decade, probably to rectify the situation, if we can, but there’s got to be some emergency action to move this thing forward. Very pleased with what we did in the last legislative session to start in this process. I think we’ve got to take a deeper dive than what we have done to date,” explains State Sen. Steve Meredith.

Meredith has his master’s degree in Health Care Administration from the University of Minnesota and before joining the General Assembly, he served as the chief executive officer of Twin Lakes Regional Medical Center in Grayson County for 30 years. 

You can watch the full In Focus Kentucky segment in the player above.