Press Release: Gov. Evers Approves New Emergency Rule to Allow Qualified Registered Nurses to Teach Clinical Courses to Continue Addressing Wisconsin's Healthcare Workforce Shortage

State of Wisconsin sent this bulletin at 07/20/2026 11:00 AM CDT
Office of Governor Tony Evers
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: July 20, 2026
Contact: GovPress@wisconsin.gov 
 
Gov. Evers Approves New Emergency Rule to Allow Qualified Registered Nurses to Teach Clinical Courses to Continue Addressing Wisconsin’s Healthcare Workforce Shortage
New emergency rule approved by the governor will bolster education, training, recruitment, and retention of healthcare workers across Wisconsin 
MADISON — Gov. Tony Evers announced that he has approved new changes to Wisconsin’s faculty approval process for nursing schools, allowing for qualified Registered Nurses (RNs) to teach clinical courses if they meet certain criteria. The emergency rule change follows a recommendation by the Governor’s Task Force on the Healthcare Workforce, established by Gov. Evers in 2024, to expand the pool of qualified individuals able to teach healthcare students. In addition to this recommendation, the Governor’s Task Force on Healthcare Workforce includes 10 recommendations and 26 action items with the goal of addressing the state’s longstanding healthcare workforce shortages that have plagued the state for years. The governor approved the new emergency rule last week.

“Our work to address our state’s nursing shortage is critically important, which is why I’m proud to enact this new emergency rule change to allow qualified RNs to offer their knowledge and experience in teaching clinical courses, helping to train the next generation of Wisconsin’s nurses,” said Gov. Evers. “Especially as Wisconsin faces continued workforce challenges within our healthcare industry, we need to make sure qualified, trained medical professionals can join our workforce, and this is an important step to make sure that happens. This emergency rule change will help alleviate significant nursing school staffing shortages and reduce barriers to the nursing practice.” 

The emergency rule change allows greater flexibility in the faculty available to teach nursing students in clinical settings. Previously, a master’s degree in nursing was generally required in order to teach clinical courses in nursing programs. Now, under this new pathway, qualified faculty must: 
  • Hold a bachelor’s degree in nursing;  
  • Be a current, active, and unencumbered RN with license or privilege to practice in Wisconsin;  
  • Have at least two years of clinical experience relevant to the specific clinical area that they would be teaching; 
  • Be enrolled in a graduate program and maintain steady progress towards completion, have completed graduate-level courses or education in clinical best practices, or have a national certification in a nursing field specialty relevant to the assigned clinical field they would be teaching; and 
  • Practice under the supervision of an RN who meets traditional qualifications. 
The new emergency rule change follows suit with at least twelve other states’ nursing faculty accreditation requirements, including Michigan, and is supported by the dean of the Marquette University College of Nursing, the Wisconsin Hospital Association, the dean of the College of Allied Health & College of Nursing at Northeast Wisconsin Technical College, the Association of Nursing Education of Wisconsin, and the Wisconsin Nurses Association. 

For the past seven years, Gov. Evers and the Evers Administration have worked hard to support and bolster the state’s healthcare workforce, including the nursing workforce. In 2024, Gov. Evers established the Governor’s Task Force on the Healthcare Workforce by signing Executive Order #220. The Task Force was charged with studying the workforce challenges facing the state’s healthcare system, including recruitment and retention, identifying ways to improve patient care and alleviate the burdens on the healthcare workforce, exploring educational and training pathways to grow a sustainable healthcare workforce, and creating an action plan with solutions related to workforce development, industry innovation, education, and training for consideration in the governor’s 2025-27 Executive Budget.

The 25-member task force met six times to hear from healthcare industry experts and leaders, analyze labor market data, and produce an advisory action plan for Gov. Evers’ review and consideration. As a result of those meetings, the Task Force adopted 10 recommendations with 26 action items representing a variety of policies and programs to address various industry issues, including education, training, recruitment, and retention of healthcare workers. The action plan represents a strategic set of policy and implementation approaches targeting the healthcare industry’s chronic challenges.

Read the full Governor’s Task Force on the Healthcare Workforce Advisory Action Plan and learn more about the work of the Governor’s Task Force on the Healthcare Workforce on the DHS website. 

Since the establishment of the Governor’s Task Force on the Healthcare Workforce, Gov. Evers has implemented several of the Task Force’s recommendations, including last year, when the governor signed Assembly Bill 257, now 2025 Wisconsin Act 17, a bipartisan bill relating to the independent practice of advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs). The bill signed by the governor creates a new licensure opportunity for RNs to become APRNs, ultimately increasing career opportunities for RNs and APRNs and expanding healthcare service access for Wisconsinites. 

Additionally, earlier this year, Gov. Evers, together with the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development, announced over $410,000 in worker training grant awards through the Wisconsin Fast Forward Program to assist three organizations in training more than 600 healthcare workers and help fill critical workforce needs. The funding, secured by Gov. Evers in the bipartisan 2025-27 Biennial Budget to address Wisconsin’s healthcare worker shortage, will help to develop and implement strategic industry partnership programs for high-demand health sciences, healthcare, and other related occupations.  

The Board of Nursing will continue promulgation of a permanent rule relating to faculty accreditation standards, and a public hearing on the draft permanent rule is scheduled for Sept. 10, 2026, at 9:30 a.m. 
 
An online version of this release is available here.
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