ENA Calls for Investment in Nursing Infrastructure
SCHAUMBURG, Ill. (Dec. 15, 2025) – The nursing shortage straining hospitals throughout the United States—particularly in emergency departments—is a multi-faceted problem requiring comprehensive solutions focused on recruiting and retaining more nursing school faculty and modernizing educational programs to accommodate more students to meet the demand.
That’s why the Emergency Nurses Association and more than 50 other nursing organizations support the Future Advancement of Academic Nursing Act. A Senate bill introduced by Sens. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., and Adam Schiff, D-Calif., and a House bill introduced by Rep. Lauren Underwood, D-Ill., call for a $1 billion investment in the future nursing through grants to boost enrollment, recruit and retain faculty, modernize curriculum and improve technology and simulation labs.
“Emergency nursing is a unique specialty, which requires expert skills and fast decision-making when seconds count for our patients. A pipeline of new nurses joining our emergency departments is vital,” said ENA President Ryan Oglesby, PhD, MHA, RN, CEN, CFRN, NEA-BC. “Without enough students in nursing schools and instructors to teach them, staff shortages will only worsen and can lead to delays in the care nurses provide such as triage, rapid assessment and interventions such as administering medication and much more.”
Emergency departments must assess and stabilize everyone who enters the doors, from children with ear infections to gunshot victims to stroke patients. Retirements in an aging workforce play a role in the nursing shortage, as do the limited number of openings in nursing schools and availability of on-site learning opportunities. FAAN would help fund nursing education, modernize nursing schools, and increase the number of clinical education sites.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics has projected there will be 189,000 openings for registered nurses across health care each year through 2034 due to nurses retiring or transferring to different occupations. The investment in nurses and nurse education called for in the FAAN Act would provide substantial help in addressing this crisis.
ENA thanks Rep. Underwood, who is one of three nurses in Congress, and Sens. Merkley and Schiff for understanding this crisis has implications for the care each patient receives and committing to creating solutions.
The Emergency Nurses Association is the premier professional nursing association dedicated to defining the future of emergency nursing through advocacy, education, research, innovation, and leadership. Founded in 1970, ENA has proven to be an indispensable resource to the global emergency nursing community. With nearly 45,000 members worldwide, ENA advocates for patient safety, develops industry-leading practice standards and guidelines and guides emergency health care public policy. ENA members have expertise in triage, patient care, disaster preparedness, and all aspects of emergency care. Additional information is available at www.ena.org.