While the healthcare industry is often considered to be recession-proof, Healthcare jobs in Atlanta are starting to feel the pain of the current economy.
Many hospitals, doctors and other medical providers are seeing financial problems as more patients can’t afford to pay bills and more patients postpone medical care. The State of Georgia has more than 170 hospitals, all of which are being affected by the economy. Because of less income, hospitals are being forced to delay equipment purchases and renovations.
According to an article by the Atlanta Journal Constitution, part of the problem is that Georgia’s unemployment rate continues to rise, resulting in more and more people being without health insurance and causing some people to cut back on elective surgeries, scheduled procedures, appointments and prescription drugs.
“Elective procedures are decreasing rapidly,” Kevin Bloye, of the Georgia Hospital Association, said in the article. “For a lot of hospitals, it’s their bread and butter – hernia repairs, knee replacements, bariatric procedures.”
While the healthcare industry is usually insulated from economic strife because urgent medical needs get treatment, health services that can be postponed are beginning to hurt the industry. The state also is facing a budget shortfall of $1.6 billion to $1.8 billion, which has put on hold a payment increase under Medicaid for hospitals, doctors, nursing homes, dentists and other medical providers.
The Georgia Department of Labor projects that health services will account for one in every 12 new jobs throughout the state by 2016. Much of the growth is expected in hospitals, physician offices, nursing and residential care facilities. Of the 20 fastest-growing occupations, nine are in healthcare, including home health aides and physician assistants.
According to the United States Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics, the Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta area’s education and health services industry employed 267,100 workers during October 2008, up from 262,600 during September, and an increase of 3.1 percent from last year.
[...] Healthcare Jobs in Atlanta Feeling Recession By carpenjl While the healthcare industry is often considered to be recession-proof, Healthcare jobs in Atlanta are starting to feel the pain of the current economy. Many hospitals, doctors and other medical providers are seeing financial problems … Job Search News – http://jobsearchnews.com/ [...]