The U.S. healthcare sector continues to grow jobs in 2011 as the national economic situation remains dicey. The industry added 43,800 positions in September.
Over the past 12 months, healthcare industry employment has grown by 335,000 jobs.
According to the latest employment report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the biggest healthcare job gains were in ambulatory care settings and at hospitals. Approximately 26,000 ambulatory care jobs were added in September, while employment at hospitals rose by 13,300.
[See also: U.S. job growth stalled in August, but healthcare hiring continues to rise.]
The dominant job growth area in ambulatory care was at physician offices, which added 12,200 jobs. Home healthcare services added 5,000 jobs, while outpatient care centers boosted employment by 3,800 jobs.
Nursing and residential care facilities also increased hiring in September, adding 4,500 jobs.
Overall, total non-farm payroll employment increased by 103,000 in September, and the national unemployment rate held steady at 9.1 percent. The rate has changed little since April. The total number of unemployed persons was essentially unchanged at 14.0 million.
The national labor force, currently at 154 million, increased by 423,000 from August to September.
The number of long-term unemployed (those jobless for 27 or more weeks) rose by 200,000 to 6.2 million. The long-term unemployed currently make up about 44.6 percent of unemployed persons.
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