The healthcare workforce declined by 44,000 jobs in the first three months of this year, compared to the end of 2020, according to an analysis released April 16 by nonprofit researchers Altarum.
Based on data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, healthcare added 11,500 jobs in March.
The analysis found that revised numbers from the bureau show healthcare employment fluctuated in the prior two months, with healthcare adding 25,000 jobs in February and dropping more than 80,000 jobs in January.
Altarum said the January decline puts healthcare employment down by 44,000 jobs in the first quarter of 2021 compared to the end of 2020.
Overall, healthcare employment is down by 3.1 percent, or 557,000 jobs, compared to February 2020, and hospital employment is down by 37,000 jobs in the first quarter of 2021 compared to the end of 2020, according to the analysis.
Read the full analysis here.