Addressing Health Care Workforce Shortages

INTRODUCTION SECTION

The US is facing growing health care workforce shortages: Association of American Medical Colleges, New AAMC Report Shows Continuing Projected Physician Shortage, 2024

Definition of shortages: Mario Amorim Lopes et al., Human Resources for Health, Handling healthcare workforce planning with care: where do we stand?, 2015

NOTE: Supply generally refers to the individuals and organizations that provide health care to the population. Demand, on the other hand, is an economic concept that reflects patients' or payers' willingness to purchase health care services at a specific price. This willingness is influenced by various social and cultural factors, including health literacy, access to services, readiness to seek care, insurance coverage, pricing, geography, and the availability of services. Need pertains to the amount of health care workforce required to deliver a sufficient volume of services to meet desired health standards.

• Source: Gaetano Forte, Association of American Medical Colleges, Why Health Workforce Projections Are Worth Doing, 2023

Shortages strain health care access and quality, increase costs, and contribute to burnout among health care workers: Mario Amorim Lopes et al., Human Resources for Health, Handling healthcare workforce planning with care: where do we stand?, 2015

THE STATE OF WORKFORCE SHORTAGES

31 out of 35 physician specialties are expected to face shortages: Health Resources & Services Administration, Health Workforce Projections, 2024

Workforce shortages are expected to increase: Health Resources & Services Administration, Workforce Projections, 2025

Supply and demand across health care specialties: Health Resources & Services Administration, Workforce Projections, 2025

Geographic Variation

The distribution of providers varies across the country, resulting in current and projected shortages in some states and surpluses in others. These trends are not always evident when looking solely at national-level numbers: Health Resources & Services Administration, Workforce Projections, 2025

By 2037, 47 states are expected to have a shortage of primary care physicians: Health Resources & Services Administration, Workforce Projections, 2025

Level of demand met: family medicine physicians: Health Resources & Services Administration, Workforce Projections, 2025

Shortages in rural areas are especially severe and projected to worsen: Health Resources & Services Administration, Workforce Projections, 2025

Projected shortages for nonmetro and metro areas by 2037: Health Resources & Services Administration, Health Workforce Projections, 2024

FACTORS THAT IMPACT WORKFORCE SHORTAGES

Key factors of workforce shortages include:

The Aging Population

The growing aging population and chronic disease rates increase demand for complex, specialty care: Association of American Medical Colleges, The Complexities of Physician Supply and Demand: Projections From 2021 to 2036, 2024

Recruitment and Retention

Recruiting, training, and retaining a diverse health care workforce is a significant challenge, especially in underserved or rural areas: Rural Health Information Hub, Recruitment and Retention for Rural Health Facilities, 2025

Maldistribution of Providers

The distribution of health care providers is uneven across the country, leading to severe shortages in some states while creating an abundance in others: Health Resources & Services Administration, Health Workforce Projections, 2025

Financial Strain

Labor is one of the largest cost drivers for hospitals: American Hospital Association, America’s Hospitals and Health Systems Continue to Face Escalating Operational Costs and Economic Pressures as They Care for Patients and Communities, 2024

Reliance on costly contract labor worsens financial pressures:

• Source 1: American Hospital Association, America’s Hospitals and Health Systems Continue to Face Escalating Operational Costs and Economic Pressures as They Care for Patients and Communities, 2024

• Source 2: Jeff Lagasse, Healthcare Finance, Labor expenses continue to challenge hospitals, 2024

Provider Burnout

Although self-reported burnout and depression rates have recently declined, rates remain high among physicians: Jon McKenna, Medscape, Physician Burnout & Depression Report 2024, 2024

Self-Reported Physician Burnout and Depression Rates:

• Source 1: Leslie Kane, Medscape, Medscape National Physician Burnout & Suicide Report 2020: The Generational Divide, 2020

• Source 2: Leslie Kane, Medscape, 'Death by 1000 Cuts': Medscape National Physician Burnout & Suicide Report 2021, 2021

• Source 3: Leslie Kane, Medscape, Physician Burnout & Depression Report 2022: Stress, Anxiety, and Anger, 2022

• Source 4: Leslie Kane, 'I Cry but No One Cares': Physician Burnout & Depression Report 2023, 2023

• Source 5: Jon McKenna, Medscape, Physician Burnout & Depression Report 2024, 2024

THE IMPACT OF WORKFORCE SHORTAGES

Health care workforce shortages strain the health care system, impacting access to and quality of care and health care costs: Lisa Harootunian et al., Bipartisan Policy Center, Addressing the Direct Care Workforce Shortage, 2023

Access to Care

Reduced Access to Care: Tulane University, The Impact of Hospital Staff Shortages in Health Care, 2022

Longer Wait Times: AMN Healthcare and Merritt Hawkins, Survey of Physician Appointment Wait Times and Medicare and Medicaid Acceptance Rates, 2022

Increased Provider Workloads: Center Forward, Strengthening America’s Healthcare Workforce: Burnout, Shortages, and Development, 2024

Delayed Patient Care: The Hospital and Healthsystem Association of Pennsylvania, Health Care Workforce Shortages Strain Access to Care, 2025

Further Travel Distances to Care:

• Source 1: Navigating healthcare staff shortages: innovative approaches to enhance access and care, Philips, 2025

• Source 2: US Government Accountability Office, Rural Hospital Closures: Affected Residents Had Reduced Access to Health Care Services, 2021

Health Outcomes

Shortages of health care workers limit patient access to care and worsen health outcomes.

• Source 1: Katie Boston-Leary et al., Patient Safety Network, Patient Safety Amid Nursing Workforce Challenges, 2024

• Source 2: Tmam A. Al-Ghunaim et al., The American Journal of Surgery, Surgeon burnout, impact on patient safety and professionalism: A systematic review and meta-analysis, 2022

Culturally competent care improves health outcomes and quality of care, but the current workforce does not reflect the communities it serves.

• Source 1: Junko Takeshita et al., JAMA Network Open, Association of Racial/Ethnic and Gender Concordance Between Patients and Physicians With Patient Experience Ratings, 2020

• Source 2: Blue Cross Blue Shield Association, The State of Health Care Workforce Equity, 2024

Health Care Costs

Declining access to care due to workforce shortages, particularly in primary care, may lead patients to seek more costly emergency care: Jeff Lagasse, Healthcare Finance, Labor expenses continue to challenge hospitals, 2024

This raises health care costs and premiums, worsening affordability and access challenges: Jeff Lagasse, Healthcare Finance, Labor expenses continue to challenge hospitals, 2024

In addition, patients may delay seeking care, leading to more advanced or preventable conditions and requiring costly treatments: Jeff Lagasse, Healthcare Finance, Labor expenses continue to challenge hospitals, 2024

STRATEGIES TO SUPPORT THE WORKFORCE

Building the Workforce

Expand recruitment, training, and retention programs that support workforce development:

• Source 1: Blue Cross and Blue Shield of New Mexico, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of New Mexico Gives Half a Million to Expand New Mexico’s Physician Workforce, 2024

• Source 2: Daniel Chang, KFF Health News, Doctor Wanted: Small Town Offers Big Perks To Attract a Physician, 2025

• Source 3: Blue Cross Blue Shield Association, Building an equitable health care workforce, 2024

• Source 4: National Conference of State Legislatures, Leveraging Career Pathway Programs: State Strategies to Combat Health Care Workforce Shortages, 2023

• Source 5: Blue Cross Blue Shield Association, Building an equitable health care workforce, 2024

• Source 6: Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arizona, AZ Blue Donates $80K to Support U of A Health Student Training, 2025

Promote providers' practices in critical shortage areas.

• Source 1: Elevance Health, Elevance Health-Sponsored Scholarships Encourage Health Professionals to Practice in Rural and Under-Resourced Areas, 2025

• Source 2: Rebekah Falkner, National Academy for State Health Policy, Addressing Health Care Workforce Challenges: Spotlight on New York, 2023

• Source 3: US Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, What are the value-based programs?, 2024

• Source 4: American Hospital Association, Program increases incentives to practice primary care in shortage areas, 2024

Improve access to racially and ethnically concordant care:

• Source 1: Tim Brown et al., Medical Care, Shared Decision-making Lowers Medical Expenditures and the Effect Is Amplified in Racially-Ethnically Concordant Relationships, 2023

• Source 2: Blue Cross Blue Shield Association, Building an equitable health care workforce, 2024

• Source 3: Blue Cross Blue Shield Association, Creating a more equitable system for the health of America, 2024

Promote Provider Health

Support provider mental health and burnout: National Academy of Medicine, National Plan for Health Workforce Well-Being, 2022

Prioritize wellness among health care providers to retain clinicians and improve outcomes for providers and patients: Sarah Berg, American Medical Association, Focus on these 6 areas to boost physician well-being, 2025

Expand the Care Team

Broaden roles and availability of non-physician practitioners:

• Source 1: Blue Cross Blue Shield Association, Building an equitable health care workforce, 2024

• Source 2: Razan Badr, National Conference of State Legislatures, Facing Workforce Shortages, States Expand Authority of Health Professionals, 2024

Leverage community-initiated care and support programs:

• Source 1: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Practical Guide for Expanding the Community-Based Behavioral Health Workforce, 2024

Expand care delivery, including through mobile clinics, to bring care directly to communities:

• Source 1: Blue Cross and Blue Shield of New Mexico, Care Van Collaborations Bridge Health Care Gaps Across New Mexico, 2025

• Source 2: Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas, OB 'Care on Wheels' Launched to Provide Vital Support for Pregnant Women and Babies in Houston, 2025

• Source 3: Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Montana, Celebrating 10 Years of the Care Van Program, 2024

Leverage Technology

Utilize technology - including telehealth and artificial intelligence (AI) - to address gaps in the health care workforce.

• Source 1: Health Recovery Solutions, The Ultimate Guide to Telehealth Technology, 2024

• Source 2: Florence Kariuki, Health Recovery Solutions, Virtual Telehealth: Keys to Developing a Successful Virtual Care Model, 2024

• Source 3: Suhas Gondi and Tina Shah, Health Affairs, Fulfilling The Promise Of AI To Reduce Clinician Burnout, 2025

AI can help address workforce challenges by reducing workload and burnout, improving remote patient monitoring and telehealth, enhancing diagnostic accuracy, and aiding clinician decision-making.

• Source 1: McKinsey & Company, The pulse of nurses’ perspectives on AI in healthcare delivery, 2024

• Source 2: Shiva Maleki Varnosfaderani and Mohamad Forouzanfar, Bioengineering (Basel), The Role of AI in Hospitals and Clinics: Transforming Healthcare in the 21st Century, 2024

AI's wider adoption could save the US health care system an estimated $200 to $360 billion annually, or 5% to 10% of costs:

• NOTE: Based on 2019 dollars.

• Source 1: Nikhil R. Sahni et al., National Bureau of Economic Research, The Economics of Artificial Intelligence: Health Care Challenges, The Potential Impact of Artificial Intelligence on Health Care Spending, 2024

• Source 2: Jack Eastburn et al., McKinsey & Company, Digital transformation: Health systems’ investment priorities, 2024