Employment at hospitals and health systems fell by more than 8,000 jobs in September 2021. Overall, employment in the United States increased by 194,000, according to preliminary data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Health care jobs overall fell by 17,500 and remain under 16 million, seasonally adjusted. Although outpatient care centers, physicians, and dentists continued to add jobs, nursing and residential care facility employment fell by 37,600. Since the beginning of the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, jobs in hospitals and health systems have stayed below their peak in February 2020.

Bureau of Labor Statistics data can be obtained at Table B-1. Employees on nonfarm payrolls by industry sector and selected industry detail (bls.gov).