Examining the Healthcare Salary Gap: Fixing It Will Take More Than a Bigger Paycheck

| July 30, 2026

$86,000. That's the median salary advertised for open healthcare roles and it’s 48% more than what current healthcare workers earn, according to the Covista Care Capacity Monitor. Despite the pay increases, healthcare positions are still going unfilled, especially in nursing.

Why isn't higher pay fixing the healthcare staffing gap?

69% of healthcare executives cite competition for compensation as a barrier to hiring— proof that traditional recruiting strategies aren't working. Higher salaries, signing bonuses and job board postings compete for the same limited talent pool but don't expand it. When advertised salaries exceed current worker pay by nearly half and vacancies still persist, the problem isn't a willingness to invest but a lack of supply.

Improving retention rates and working conditions is also critical for addressing the healthcare workforce shortage. 13% of surveyed registered nurses in the Covista Care Capacity Monitor are at least somewhat likely to leave in the next 12 months, compounding the insufficient supply of qualified candidates in the healthcare workforce pipeline.

The healthcare staffing shortage is most acute among nurses

How bad is the nursing shortage in the U.S.? According to the Covista Care Capacity Monitor, there are 2,645,339 open registered nurse positions against a workforce of 3,716,672—more vacancies than any other role tracked, in any discipline. That gap extends across the nursing profession: 4.0 vacancies per job seeker among registered nurses, 5.9 among nurse practitioners and 8.2 among nurse anesthetists. While the healthcare workforce shortage ratio runs higher in specialties like radiation therapy or cardiovascular technology, it's the scale of the nursing shortage that sets it apart.

That scarcity persists even though nursing offers something increasingly rare: real upward mobility. As automation and AI reshape other career paths, nursing remains one of the few professions still offering stability and wage growth. Rising concern over AI job displacement and growing anxiety about affordability are pushing more people to consider the field, and nursing schools are already seeing enrollment climb in response. The demand-side interest is there. What's missing is the capacity to convert it—without enough seats and clinical placements, that growing interest can't translate into the number of nurses that this country needs.

Expanding the healthcare workforce pipeline through education partnerships

Education partnerships that build a healthcare workforce pipeline are one of the most effective tools available for addressing the shortage. Unlike competing on salary, which redistributes the existing pool of candidates, education partnerships create seats and clinical placements that didn't exist before. Executives agree: according to the Covista Care Capacity Monitor, nearly 70% of healthcare executives identify education partnerships as among their most effective workforce strategies ahead of hiring/retention bonuses, upskilling and staffing agencies. Yet only 22% are significantly investing in them.

Chamberlain University’s partnership with SSM Health shows what this looks like in practice. Students receive tuition assistance and hands-on clinical experience inside SSM Health facilities, and in exchange, commit to working within the health system after graduation. The Aspiring Nurse Program is projected to produce more than 400 practice-ready nurses annually across Missouri, Oklahoma, Illinois and Wisconsin.

Covista and Advocate Health—the nation's third-largest nonprofit integrated health system—announced a similar collaboration, combining BSN scholarships, clinical immersion within Advocate facilities and loan repayment support during employment to create a direct pathway from enrollment to practice-ready nursing. The program establishes an Acute and Progressive Care specialty track tailored to Advocate Health's workforce needs and is designed to grow to serve hundreds of students each year across Advocate's eight-state footprint.

The healthcare salary gap is a market signal

Advertised roles paying nearly 50% more than what current workers make still can't attract enough qualified candidates. That gap is a market signal, not a pay equity issue. The fix is a structural expansion of the healthcare workforce pipeline. Widening access to education and then connecting students directly to employment are powerful ways to address the healthcare workforce shortage at scale.