Joyce Introduces Legislation to Increase Nurse Faculty Workforce
WASHINGTON D.C. – Today, Representatives Dave Joyce (OH-14), Suzanne Bonamici (OR-01), Jen Kiggans (VA-02), and Lauren Underwood (IL-14) introduced the Nurse Faculty Shortage Reduction Act. This bill would help address the shortage of nursing faculty by providing financial support to new and early-career faculty members, helping recruit and retain qualified educators. Specifically, it would create a grant program that closes the gap between clinical nursing and nurse faculty roles, operating alongside the existing Health Resources and Services Administration’s (HRSA) Nurse Faculty Loan Repayment Program (NFLP). Companion legislation was introduced in the Senate by Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK).
“The nursing shortage our country is facing is affecting the price, quality, and timeliness of care for our patients. Education is one of the key components to getting more nurses to enter the workforce, and Congress must do its part to help,” said Representative Joyce, Co-Chair of the Congressional Nursing Caucus. “This bipartisan, bicameral legislation will help increase faculty at nursing schools, providing students with a more hands-on, higher-quality education. I want to thank my colleagues co-leading this impactful legislation, and I look forward to continuing to fight for our nurses in Congress.”
“We need more nurses, but there aren’t enough opportunities for people to get the education they need to enter this essential and noble profession,” said Representative Bonamici. “This bipartisan legislation will incentivize more nurses to become instructors so they can fill staffing shortages and give more students the opportunity to become nurses. I thank my bipartisan co-sponsors for their support, and look forward to working with them to get this bill across the finish line.”
“As a geriatric nurse practitioner and Vice Chair of the Congressional Nursing Caucus, I know firsthand how essential nursing school faculty are in preparing the next generation of nurses to serve our communities. At a time when America is facing a serious healthcare workforce shortage, we must invest in the educators and institutions responsible for training future providers,” said Representative Kiggans. “Supporting nurse educators with fair pay and the resources they need is a critical step toward strengthening our healthcare system. I’m proud to work with my Nursing caucus colleagues to advance the Nurse Faculty Shortage Reduction Act and ensure we are building a workforce ready to meet the needs of patients across the country.”
“Nursing shortages across the country are affecting the quality of care that patients receive and are jeopardizing public health. Nurses bring unique expertise and leadership to the communities they serve, and we must make the right investments to expand the training pipeline for these health care professionals,” said Representative Underwood. “I’m proud to co-lead this legislation to close the pay gap between nurse educators and clinical nurses and encourage nursing schools to invest in students. By investing in future generations of nurses, we can grow the nursing workforce, lower health care costs, and ensure better health outcomes for Illinois families.”
“Nurses are the backbone of our health care system, but our country is facing a shortage of these healers—especially due to the burnout and strain from the Trump Administration’s hospital funding cuts,” said Senator Durbin. “Through the Nurse Faculty Shortage Reduction Act, we are tackling the main economic driver of our nursing shortage. By investing in more faculty to train the next generation of nurses, our bipartisan, bicameral bill will help support our nurses and ensure our hospitals are well-staffed.”
“The nursing shortage around the country is directly reflected in worsening health outcomes in our communities,” said Senator Murkowski. “This legislation secures a healthier future for Alaska, and the country, by investing in initiatives to recruit and retain bedside nurses. Equipping programs with the resources they need to train America’s next generation of nurses will decrease patient mortality, reduce medical errors, and ensure higher-quality care.”
“With an ongoing faculty shortage, we recognize that strengthening the population of future nurse educators is essential to sustaining the U.S. healthcare system and communities across the country,” said Dr. Jean Giddens, Board Chair for the American Association of Colleges of Nursing. “The Nurse Faculty Shortage Reduction Act is an innovative approach to supporting our nursing schools with recruiting and retaining faculty to meet a critical national need.”
“America cannot build the nursing workforce our patients and communities need if nursing schools are forced to turn away qualified applicants because they cannot hire and keep faculty,” said Jennifer Mensik Kennedy, PhD, MBA, RN, NEA-BC, FAAN, President of the American Nurses Association. “This bipartisan, bicameral bill takes a practical approach by helping nursing programs compete for qualified educators and expand the pipeline of future nurses. ANA urges Congress to move this legislation forward.”
Background:
There are multiple factors contributing to our nation’s nursing workforce shortage, with a lack of qualified nursing educators being one of the main reasons. According to the American Association of Colleges of Nursing, in 2021, U.S. nursing schools turned away 91,938 qualified applications from baccalaureate and graduate nursing programs due to an insufficient number of faculty, clinical sites, classroom space, clinical preceptors, and budget constraints, with faculty shortages being cited as the top reason for not accepting all qualified applicants. Clinical and private settings are drawing educators away from nursing school, with the median salary for advanced practice registered nurses being $120,000, while the average salary for master’s-prepared nursing professors is $87,325. Master’s and doctoral programs are also not producing enough qualified graduates to meet the demand for educators, with a decline of 3.8% for enrollment in master’s programs in 2021 and 13% decline in PhD nursing enrollment from 2013 to 2021.
Read the full text of the bill here.
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