Background and Purpose of the Task Force B y 2002, several states were reporting severe nursing shortages.At the same time, some North Carolina employers were reporting difficulties filling nursing positions. Whether there is currently a nursing workforce "shortage" or "crisis" in North Carolina is open to debate. Yet, there is little question that, without some intervention, North Carolina is likely to experience a severe nursing shortage in the coming decade due to the combination of an aging population and an aging nursing workforce. Longrange forecasts of registered nurse (RN) supply and demand in North Carolina predict a shortage of anywhere from 9,000 nurses in 2015 to almost 18,000 by 2020.
Significant Changes are Needed to Improve North Carolina's Long-Term Care SystemNo set of issues related to the health of North Carolinians is more important or more complicated than those dealing with long-term care for the state's older adults and people with services are faced with three options: (1) find a family member to provide unpaid care; (2) pay a caregiver out-ofpocket; or (3) enter a long-term care facility where, as they more quickly use up their resources to pay for institutional care, they are more likely to qualify for public subsidies. This raises questions of the availability of services and financing
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