Although the total number of registered nurse have been increased rapidly since 1990s, the nursing shortage is still a serious problem in mainland China. There are three major roots of nursing shortage: 1) the unbalanced nursing supply-demand structure; 2) the issues in medical care system; and 3) the ineffectiveness of the hospital nursing management. Finally, the author argues that: it is high time for the central government together with the related ministries to implement the regulation of nursing, to setup the long-term nurse supply plan at the national and provincial level, and to prioritize the supply of community nurses, nursing specialists, and nurses with bachelor's degree.