The U.S. healthcare workforce shortage is already straining access to care, and the Covista Healthcare Workforce Index, the latest in an ongoing series of research by Covista on the healthcare workforce, projects that the shortfall is on track to nearly double by 2040 without action.

• The gap spans critical roles across nursing, physicians and specialists, with consequences ranging from stretched bedside care to delayed diagnoses and longer wait times.
• The positive news: The research also indicates that a coordinated approach combining workforce investment with changes in how care is delivered could close 92% of the projected gap.

Why it's important: Closing the healthcare workforce gap could result in better outcomes through improved access to care.

• The Index estimates that closing the nursing shortage could save nearly 100,000 lives cumulatively by 2040, while closing the physician gap could add more than six months to average life expectancy.
• Unfilled healthcare positions already cost the average U.S. family about $430 a year, according to the model. Without action, the Index indicates that figure could rise to $1,250 by 2040, adding pressure to household budgets, particularly in rural and underserved communities.

Key numbers: The stakes are particularly visible in Utah, where 51,158 total healthcare jobs were open in 2025, up 33% year over year. According to the Covista Care Capacity Monitor, there are roughly 2.5 open healthcare jobs for every unemployed healthcare worker each month statewide.

• The market is even tighter in the Salt Lake City metro area, where according to the research, there were 24,231 open healthcare job postings in 2025, accounting for nearly half of the state's total. Openings are up 19% year over year, while healthcare unemployment is just 0.66%.
• That leaves about 5.2 open healthcare jobs for every unemployed healthcare worker each month, nearly double the statewide ratio.

The strategy: Closing the gap will require a portfolio approach, with health systems, educators and policymakers working across multiple solutions.

• No single solution solves the workforce shortage on its own. Covista's model combines care delivery innovation with supply actions focused on attracting, developing and retaining healthcare talent.
• One key lever is expanding training capacity. The Index estimates that developing talent through increased education capacity, clinical placements and accelerated pathways could close 25% of the projected 2040 gap.

How it's done: Covista, America's largest healthcare educator is opening its first Chamberlain University campus in Utah to help address the state's critical nurse shortage. The Salt Lake City campus began accepting applications in the summer and will begin classes in October 2026.

• Why now: Utah has the lowest number of nurses per capita in the country, at just seven per 1,000 residents.

• Chamberlain University is the largest school of nursing in the U.S. The Utah campus is part of a broader expansion strategy to build the nation's nursing pipeline and address the healthcare workforce shortage at scale.

"Chamberlain provides a path to a nursing career for those residents to achieve their ambition to become a nurse," said Amelia Manning, president of Chamberlain University.

• "We're thrilled to expand the education capacity in a state deeply committed to growing its healthcare workforce and make it easier for the next generation of Utah nurses to train here, stay here and step into this community ready to care for the patients who need them."

The details: Chamberlain's Salt Lake City campus is designed for students seeking a flexible pathway to becoming a registered nurse.

• Evening and weekend options allow students to pursue a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) while balancing work, family and other responsibilities.
• The program offers a three-year path to graduation.

Plus: Students will have the chance to train in a high-tech SIMCARE CENTER™ and complete direct patient care clinicals with health system partners.

The takeaway: America's healthcare workforce shortage is already here, and Covista's research shows the gap could grow substantially without coordinated action.

• The Index also points to a path forward: combining workforce investment with changes in how care is delivered, including expanding the education capacity needed to prepare more people for healthcare careers.

Learn how Covista is working to close the gap.