2026 is a great year to work as a caregiver! We expect to see plenty of new job openings for Home Care Aides (HCAs), as well as plenty of opportunities to advance into higher-level or specialized roles.
Overall, the U.S. is seeing a growing need for personal and health care services as the population ages. Many American adults have chronic conditions like diabetes or obesity, including a growing number of older adults. Our country will need many more Home Care Aides to help care for these patients. If you’re thinking about advancing into nursing in the future, then you may be happy to learn that we also expect to see job growth for NACs and nurses.
Rapidly Increasing Demand For Home Care Aides
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), employment for home health and personal care aides (including Home Care Aides) is expected to grow 17% from 2024 to 2034. That is much faster job growth than what we expect for other jobs. Washington state is expected to be in the top ten states with the highest employment for home health and personal care aides.
Long-term care services have been shifting from nursing homes and institutional settings to home-based settings. This trend is expected to create new jobs for home health and personal care aides. The BLS also notes that there will likely be many job openings resulting from the need to replace personal care workers who move to different jobs, retire, or otherwise exit the labor force.
Growing Demand For Nursing Assistants Certified (NACs) and Nurses
Many Home Care Aides who wish to advance their careers use an HCA-to-NAC bridge training program to become Nursing Assistants Certified (NACs). Some NACs then pursue further training to become nurses. In Washington state, Licensed Practical Nurses earn an average of $39.17 per hour, while Registered Nurses earn an average of $49.24 per hour. Based on job market trends, these career paths will likely remain excellent options for many Home Care Aides in the future.
The BLS projects 2% job growth for Nursing Assistants and Orderlies from 2024-2034. While this projection is lower than the expected job growth for Home Care Aides, the BLS notes that there will likely still be many job openings due to the need to replace NACs who move to different jobs or leave the labor force.
Job openings for nurses are also expected to grow. Based on its 2024 starting point, the BLS expects to see 3% job growth for Licensed Practical and Vocational Nurses and 5% job growth for Registered Nurses by 2034. As with other direct patient care careers, there will likely be many job openings due to the need to replace nurses who transfer to other occupations or leave the labor force.
What This Means For Your Career Advancement
The growing need for Home Care Aides may push some employers to make HCA jobs more attractive to job candidates, such as by helping with their career advancement goals. Some employers, such as Sunrise Services, already have programs in place to help HCAs train for career advancement.
At Sunrise, we offer a number of caregiver training programs that are available to anyone, whether they are employed as a caregiver with us or not. Our 75-hour Basic Home Care Aide Training program prepares you to take the Washington state HCA-C exam. Our CE courses include options that allow you to become certified for nurse delegation or specialize in an area like mental wellness or dementia. If you start a caregiving job with Sunrise, we will pay for you to earn your Washington state HCA-C license and also pay for your continuing education (CE) training.
We also offer a NAC Bridge Program for caregivers who want to move up into a Nursing Assistant Certified role. It is a 40-hour course taught over 5 days. After completing the course, you will be ready to take the NAC licensing test in Washington state.
Ready to start moving forward in your care career? Sign up for training with Sunrise Services today.
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