Earlier this morning, my colleague Matt Yglesias commented on the fact that the hospital sector has been cutting jobs more often recently. In the July jobs report, hospitals lost just over 7,000 workers. That's a new, downward trend in an industry that has generally only grown over the last decade.
Today, Advisory Board Daily Briefing editor Dan Diamond tweeted a chart emphasizing just how strong the health care industry has been throughout the downturn and recovery:

Health care grew steadily throughout the recession and recovery. Just glancing at its trajectory alone, you might never know that the nation went through a painful recession and years-long recovery.
If the hospital employment decline continues and accelerates, it could create a new dynamic in the jobs report — one in which health care isn't always such a strong boon to the labor market. Or it could just signal a shift in what the composition of health care employment looks like, with fewer hospital employees and more home care workers tending to an aging population.
Will you support Vox’s explanatory journalism?
Most news outlets make their money through advertising or subscriptions. But when it comes to what we’re trying to do at Vox, there are a couple reasons that we can't rely only on ads and subscriptions to keep the lights on.
First, advertising dollars go up and down with the economy. We often only know a few months out what our advertising revenue will be, which makes it hard to plan ahead.
Second, we’re not in the subscriptions business. Vox is here to help everyone understand the complex issues shaping the world — not just the people who can afford to pay for a subscription. We believe that’s an important part of building a more equal society. We can’t do that if we have a paywall.
That’s why we also turn to you, our readers, to help us keep Vox free. If you also believe that everyone deserves access to trusted high-quality information, will you make a gift to Vox today?
Yes, I'll give $5/month
Yes, I'll give $5/month
We accept credit card, Apple Pay, and
Google Pay. You can also contribute via