Healthcare added 19,900 jobs in February, although hospitals lost jobs for the second month since September, according to the latest jobs report from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The February count compares to 29,600 healthcare jobs lost in January, and 38,800 healthcare jobs added in December.
Within ambulatory healthcare services, dentist offices saw 5,200 added jobs, physician offices saw 8,700 job gains, and home health services gained 5,700 jobs last month.
Hospitals lost 2,200 jobs in February, compared to 2,100 jobs lost in January. Before January, the last job loss was in September, when hospitals lost 6,400 jobs.
Nursing and residential care facilities lost 6,800 jobs last month, compared to 31,000 jobs lost the month prior.
Overall, the U.S. gained 379,000 jobs in February after gaining 49,000 jobs in January. The unemployment rate was 6.2 percent last month, compared to 6.3 percent in January.
To view the full jobs report, click here.