States are taking various measures to address a nationwide nursing shortage that could impact healthcare quality in the coming years.

The shortage is becoming so acute in some areas that a large healthcare provider in Missouri recently gave $10,000 signing bonuses to experienced registered nurses willing to make a three-year commitment, according to the Springfield Business Journal.

The publication noted that Missouri currently suffers from a 9.5 percent shortage of nurses, while North Carolina has an 11 percent shortage, the Winston-Salem Journal reports.

The Journal also noted that local employers are encouraging schools to try to get students interested in health care as young as kindergarten to try to address even greater shortages that are expected in the future.

Earlier this year, the New York Daily News cited federal statistics projecting that the national shortage will hit 36 percent by 2020, fueled in part by a rapid 23 percent growth rate in the number of total nursing jobs.

The newspaper also noted that the average age for nurses in the U.S. is 47 - which further contributes to the shortage as more and more currently in the field move closer to retirement age.