A Common-Sense Approach to the Nursing Shortage: Pass the PRECEPT Nurses Act

By SARAH GOLDTHRITE

Schools of nursing are experiencing a bottleneck of applicants, and without experienced nurses willing to precept students, the pipeline of new nurses slows to a trickle. The PRECEPT Nurses Act is a practical, bipartisan solution that incentivizes experienced nurses to take on this critical role, strengthening both the nursing workforce and our health care system.

Introduced on January 14, 2025, by Congresswoman Jen Kiggans (VA-02) with bipartisan support from Reps. Dave Joyce (R-OH), Claudia Tenney (R-NY), and Jim Costa (D-CA), and in the Senate by Sens. Mark Kelly (D-AZ) and Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), the bill takes direct aim at the preceptor shortage. It proposes a $2,000 tax credit for nurses who precept students, creating a financial incentive for those who take on this essential but often unpaid role. This is not a handout – it’s compensation for important work and a necessary investment in the future of health care.

The numbers paint a clear and urgent picture. Each year, the U.S. faces an average of 194,500 registered nurse openings, largely due to retirements and career shifts, yet hospitals, clinics and community health centers struggle to fill them fast enough. The Health Resources and Services Administration projects a shortage of more than 200,000 registered nurses by 2037 Download pdf, further straining an already overburdened workforce. The result? Burnout, longer wait times and poorer patient outcomes – a crisis already unfolding in health care facilities across the country.

Without more preceptors, the problem only deepens. Fewer preceptors mean fewer nurses, both at entry and advanced practice levels. Fewer nurses mean heavier workloads and higher staff-to-patient ratios. Heavier workloads fuel burnout, resignations and even more vacancies. This cycle is unsustainable, and without intervention, it will only get worse.

In 2023 alone, over 65,000 qualified applications to undergraduate and graduate nursing programs were turned away because schools lacked preceptors, clinical sites, classroom space, faculty and funding, according to the American Association of Colleges of Nursing. These aren’t unqualified applicants. They are people ready to enter the profession but locked out due to systemic barriers. The PRECEPT Nurses Act tackles one of these barriers by ensuring there are enough clinical placements to train nurses.

This issue isn’t just about numbers – it’s about real people. Rural and underserved communities are already struggling with limited access to health care amid a nation-wide primary care provider shortage, and without enough trained nurses, especially those in advanced practice, those gaps only widen. When preceptors are incentivized to train nursing students, more students gain hands-on experience in these high-need areas, preparing them to work where they’re needed most. Decades of research have established that well-staffed nursing workforce means lower mortality rates, fewer hospital readmissions, reduced health care costs and healthier communities. The benefits are undeniable.

Preceptors play an essential role in nursing education. They are mentors, educators and frontline professionals responsible for shaping the next generation of nurses. Yet, they do this work without fair compensation or recognition. The PRECEPT Nurses Act is a practical step toward acknowledging their contributions. This legislation isn’t controversial. It’s a common-sense solution to a growing crisis. It’s practical, fair and long overdue. The nursing shortage won’t fix itself, and without action, patient care will continue to suffer. This isn’t just about giving nurses what they deserve; it’s about ensuring a stronger, more sustainable health care system that benefits everyone.

The path forward is clear. Now is the time to act.