The gap between the number of health care workers the U.S. needs and the number it has could nearly double by 2040 if current trends continue, according to a new projection released September 28. The model was built by the consulting firm Oliver Wyman for Covista, and it was presented as the Covista Healthcare Workforce Index. Covista, formerly Adtalem Global Education, is a publicly traded company that runs Chamberlain University, Walden University, and several medical and veterinary schools.
For patients, workforce numbers translate into longer waits, crowded emergency rooms, and fewer nearby clinicians. More than 108 million people already live in areas short on primary care providers, Healthcare Dive reported, citing 2026 figures from the National Institute for Health Care Management.
