Healthcare hires while the rest of the country fires

It's a good time to be an employee in the healthcare industry. While other industries' jobless rates spiked to levels not seen since 1993, healthcare continued to expand employment in December 2008.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, healthcare added 31,600 positions last month. Compare this to the 534,000 jobs lost overall, and it makes healthcare look a whole lot cheerier.

The overall statistics in healthcare employment are also positive, with the workforce in the industry growing by 2.8 percent. And the only sector of healthcare that saw a drop in employment in December, outpatient-care centers, still posted an overall growth of 1.7 percent in 2008.

Of course, all is not necessarily well in the healthcare industry; hospitals and physician offices alike are struggling with more uninsured patients, more bad debt, and a drop in elective procedures.

To learn more about the statistics:
- read this Modern Healthcare piece

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