A survey by www.Governing.com has found that nearly half of state and local healthcare workers left their position between 2017 and 2021, with 74% of workers under 35 leaving the public health sector during that same time period.

Shandy Dearth, Director of the Center for Public Health Practice, attributes the exodus to the low pay and better-paying jobs in the private sector.

Dearth hopes that Senate Bill 4 will pass and that student loan forgiveness for health workers entering the workforce may help retain healthcare workers.