And the national nursing shortage we're experiencing is going to get a lot worse before it gets better.

That's according to a new Health Workforce study, which projects new Jersey will have one of the worst nursing shortage problems in the nation.

An expected 24,000 jobs will be vacant by 2036, according to the survey from the federal Health Resources and Services Administration.

Only Georgia, California and Washington are expected to have more severe shortages, according to the report.

The state's largest nurses union says nearly a third of nurses here left their job since 2020.

Many others have gone through bitter fights with their health care systems over new contracts.

Health care workers across the country have been retiring in large numbers since the pandemic, citing the trauma and unsustainable work environments.

State and federal leaders have been looking for ways to add to the ranks by bringing in more money to train nurses, hire more faculty and make it less expensive to get a nursing degree.