Healthcare added 52,800 jobs in September, with hospitals losing jobs for the first month since May, according to the latest jobs report from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The September count is down from the 75,300 healthcare jobs added in August and the 125,500 healthcare jobs added in July. It is also down from 358,000 healthcare jobs added in June and 312,400 healthcare jobs added in May.
Within ambulatory healthcare services, dentist offices saw 3,900 new jobs, physician offices saw 18,200 job gains, and home health services had 16,200 job gains last month.
Hospitals lost 6,400 jobs in September, compared to 14,000 job gains in August, 27,400 job gains in July and 6,700 job gains in June. Prior to June, hospitals lost 26,700 jobs in May and 134,900 jobs in April.
Nursing and residential care facilities gained 1,600 jobs last month, compared to 13,700 jobs lost in August and 28,100 jobs lost in July.
Overall, the U.S. added 661,000 jobs in September, marking the fifth consecutive month of gains, but a decrease from 1.4 million jobs added in August and 1.8 million jobs added in July. The unemployment rate also fell to 7.9 percent in September, compared to 8.4 percent in August and 10.2 percent in July.
To view the full jobs report, click here.