Health Care Sees Little Hiring in October

The health care industry saw little job creation in October, adding about 11,600 positions, while the overall U.S. unemployment rate was pegged at 9 percent.

Health care jobs held steady at 14.2 million with an increase of less than 0.1 percent , based on preliminary figures from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Last month, the bureau reported the overall U.S. unemployment rate at 9.1 percent. Health care added an average of 27,957 jobs per month during the 12-month period ended in October, according to seasonally adjusted figures. During that period, the industry added 367,500 jobs, for a 2.7 percent hike since October 2010.

Outpatient care centers saw the largest percentage increase, rising nearly 0.5 percent for 2,900 new jobs. Outpatient care employs about 630,000 people overall. Physician offices, which saw a large bump in September, continued to grow, albeit at a rate similar to other health care fields. Doctor offices added 2,200 jobs at about a 1 percent clip in October to a workforce of 2.4 million

Meanwhile, growth at hospital jobs slowed to less than 1 percent, adding 3,300 jobs for the month to a workforce of 4.8 million.

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