Even during the teeth of the recession, as millions of Americans lost their jobs, one industry promised stability, growth and well-paid employment for years to come.
"Health care is the most promising industry," said Michael Thurmond, the former labor commissioner for Georgia.
For now, it appears to be a promise delayed. New metro Atlanta unemployment numbers issued Thursday underscore the sluggish state of the job market, even in healthcare.
The July jobless rate dipped one-tenth of a point from June to 10.4 percent. That was unchanged from a year earlier.
So too, were the number of jobs at hospitals, nursing homes, residential care facilities and clinics across Georgia. A year ago, the state tallied 395,700 health care jobs. In July there were 399,100, a .9 percent increase.
Reasons vary.The unemployed and newly frugal postpone elective surgery and other non-essential medical needs. Hospital costs for indigent care soar. Reduced Medicare and Medicaid payments hurt bottom lines. And uncertainty over the new federal health care law causes CEOs to budget cautiously.
“Hospitals and health-care providers have so much apprehension about the economy in general they’re not hiring as many people and getting by with less,” said Christopher Gillig, a health care services executive who was laid off in January. “Health care will grow, but not as quickly and aggressively as expected.”
Still, the fundamentals that undergirded earlier optimism remain: the country is getting older; Americans strive to get healthier; and health care reform will likely translate into job growth.
“The growing Baby Boomer population will provide enormous opportunity,” said Vicki Snow, who’s on track to graduate from Kennesaw State’s nursing program in December. “Health care jobs will always be available if you’re open to different jobs and where those jobs may be.”
Nationally, hospitals, nursing homes and clinics added 430,000 workers during the recession which lasted from December 2007 to June 2009, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. But health care doesn't operate in a vacuum. As overall unemployment rose into double-digits, the industry suffered.
“Traditionally, the health care sector lags behind the rest of the economy by as many as six quarters,” said Bill Custer, a health care expert at Georgia State University. “People lose their jobs, but don’t necessarily lose their health insurance right away because of COBRA and other insurance coverage.”
Once insurance runs out, though, people no longer spend on health care. Grady Memorial Hospital in downtown Atlanta, for example, reported that costly emergency room visits rose 11 percent during the first five months of 2011, due largely to the uninsured, compared with the same period of 2010.
Grady has cut more than 200 jobs this year, closed two neighborhood health clinics and upped prescription drug co-payments in an effort to stem a $17 million budget shortfall. In June Piedmont Healthcare, which runs hospitals in Atlanta, Jasper, Newnan and Fayetteville, announced 464 layoffs.
Memorial University Medical Center in Savannah is cutting 228 jobs. Statewide, hospitals trimmed about 3,000 jobs over the last 12 months, according to the Georgia Department of Labor.
A nursing home in Lawrenceville, for example, let go 83 workers earlier this year. Gillig, a 28-year health care industry veteran, said poor sales cost him his job at an Alpharetta company that provides laundry service for hospitals.
“There’s so much uncertainty over health care reform so hospitals are doing all they can to reduce costs,” said Gillig, formerly a senior vice president for sales. “They’re not hiring and they’re getting by with less.”
President Obama’s health care law , if it withstands court challenges, would require Americans to buy insurance while subsidizing individuals and offering tax incentives for small businesses. Hospitals expect the law to further reduce assistance from Washington as cost-containment efforts kick in. They’re also wary of additional efforts to corral the federal budget deficit.
In addition, Washington is cutting Medicare reimbursements for hospitals and states slash Medicaid payments to doctors’ offices, hospitals and nursing homes.
“Nobody has a handle on exactly how to organize health care providers in the most cost-effective way,” said Georgia State's Custer. “They’re treading carefully and making lots of plans on how to restructure and they’re waiting to see how future demand shakes out.”
He added, “Health care reform will increase demand for health services. It will cover a lot more people with health insurance. So this is just a lag before hiring resumes.”
WellStar Health System, with five hospitals in Cobb, Douglas and Paulding counties, didn’t suffer the recession as badly as its neighbors. It’s building a hospital in Hiram to replace a facility in Dallas and two outpatient clinics in Acworth and East Cobb. System-wide, WellStar hired 3,326 people the last year.
More than 192,000 people applied for those jobs, said David Anderson, WellStar's human resources chief.
“The demand for jobs far exceeds our ability to employ people,” he said. “We expect to see bigger demand for nurses, pharmacists, physical therapists, speech pathologists, social workers and primary-care physicians.”
The Bureau of Labor Statistics expects the health care industry to add 3.2 million new jobs by 2018, a 22 percent increase. Nurses, especially primary care nurses who shoulder greater medical responsibilities, are particularly coveted.
KSU’s Snow trains to be a medical-surgical nurse. Later, she hopes to do hospice care.
“I’m here because of a downturn in the economy,” said Snow, 44, laid-off from her banking job in 2008. “But at this stage in my life, it’s all about professional fulfillment anyways. The future looks bright and I can’t wait to be on the other side working with patients every day.”
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