A dangerous shortage is confronting the state – and the state itself is at least partially to blame.

Pennsylvania needs nurses. But the licensing process to become a nurse is plagued with delays, hoops for applicants to jump through and other burdens to the men and women willing to take on this difficult job.

“Nurses in Pennsylvania are experiencing longer wait times for their licenses than in neighboring states.” Ray D’Ambrosio of BAYADA Home Health Care told a Center Square reporter for an article published in Wednesday’s Williamsport Sun-Gazette. “In 2022, the median processing time for a (licensed practical nurse) endorsement in Pennsylvania was 126 days – compared to a median of around 50 days in 30 other states.”

The licensing backlog of course has a severely detrimental impact on the capabilities of health care in our state. It also is discouraging for working families and employers and may well tip the proverbial scales in decisions on whether to stay in Pennsylvania. While we do not mean to suggest that it is a major factor in those decisions, we hope our state’s leaders are taking as comprehensive an approach as possible in making our state a place people want to work and create jobs.

Correcting licensing backlogs and streamlining burdensome licensing processes are clearly a part of that.

As Sarah Biggs of St. Luke’s University noted, licensing backlogs already lead their nursing graduates – and other health care professionals – to consider relocating to states where they can join the workforce more seamlessly.

“For too long in Pennsylvania, we have been failing professionals, and in particular the medical field … the legislature needs to do better,” state Sen. Lisa Boscola, D-Bethlehem, said at a state Senate committee hearing.

We wholeheartedly agree. We hope our lawmakers will treat this issue with the urgency it deserves.

— Williamsport Sun-Gazette