Healthcare employment rose across nearly all sectors in February

Healthcare employers made more hires last month than during any period since September as COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations continued to steadily decline.

Healthcare companies added an estimated 63,500 jobs in February, up from 17,500 in the first month of 2022, according to preliminary data the Bureau of Labor Statistics released Friday. The industry contributed to a total of 678,000 new jobs across the economy.

Home health service providers, physician offices and other health practitioner clinics saw the largest increases among healthcare organizations last month. Physician and health practitioner offices have been on a stable hiring incline since January 2021 and are on track to hit their pre-pandemic growth trajectories.

The latest jobs data include revisions to previous reports. The Bureau of Labor Statistics now estimates that healthcare employers added 18,000 more jobs than the agency approximated in December and January.

Over the past year, the healthcare sector gained 219,800 jobs, although the industry is still down by 306,000 positions, about 1.9%, from its pre-pandemic level.

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Home health rebounded from losing 1,500 jobs in January to making 19,700 hires last month. Medical and diagnostic laboratories also saw a significant increase with 2,600 additional jobs.

Physician offices made 15,100 hires, compared to 9,800 in January. Other health practitioner offices grew by 12,100 jobs in February, up from 3,800 the previous month.

Hospitals and dentist offices experienced modest growth, with 2,700 and 3,700 new jobs respectively. Even nursing care facilities, which have followed a steep downward trend for the past two years, gained 1,600 jobs. In January, the sector saw its largest upturn since adding 3,800 jobs in February 2020.

Ambulatory healthcare services providers shed 1,400 jobs, making it the only healthcare subsector with shrinking employment last month.

The U.S. unemployment rate was 3.8% in February, down 0.2% from January, and 6.3 million people were unemployed. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the unemployment rate was 3.5%. Around 4.2 million people reported being unable to work due to closures or lost business linked to the pandemic last month.

The nation still has 2.1 million fewer jobs than in did in February 2020, a net loss of 1.4% over those two years.

Leisure and hospitality reported the largest gains in February with an estimated 179,000 additional jobs—mostly in bars and restaurants—followed by professional and business services, which added 95,000 jobs. Healthcare added the third-most jobs among all industries.