Health Care is a Growth Industry
[A]bsent the growth in the health care sector, employment is about at the same level as the peak of the last business cycle of more than a decade ago. Moreover, expressed as a percent of the working age population the picture is even worse.
Health care employment growth has been unaffected by the last two business cycles as illustrated in the figure. Since the beginning of the this recession, health care employment has grown more than 11 percent, and the growth was steady, even during the contraction in which all employment fell almost 6 percent.
PERCspectives on Policy by Andrew Rettenmaier and Thomas Saving.
I find it hard to believe we’re not still in a recession.
No, we’re still in one. Economists just don’t want us to figure that out otherwise we’ll stop trusting them.
Thanks for the post John!
We’re at the point where graphs and charts no longer reflect the reality for people on the street: times are hard even if we’re not technically in a recession.
Have they reflected reality in the past?
No. Most rely on deeply flawed assumptions.
So, invest in healthcare?
People are always going to be sick.
Or get a job in it.
If you have money to invest.
So, only the most well off. Figures. They get the best healthcare AND the profits from it.
I believe a lot of that growth came from Obamacare. You’re welcome.
The growth there was largely stolen from other sectors or came from the necessity of new regulations officers.
It would be interesting to see an overlay of ‘Employment-education’ in this graph. Healthcare and education are the two industries propped up largely by federal spending – one with federal health programs, the other with student loans – neither is sustainable.