Late March through April saw the onset of the Covid-19 Pandemic which shutdown much of the US economy. The Physician Office and Medical Office Sectors, which had historically proved ultra-resilient to economic and other shocks was not immune to the pandemic related shutdowns. Many physician offices were forced to temporarily close and cease elective procedures as local officials attempted to flatten the curve. As a result, employment within the ambulatory services sector (which comprises employees in MOBs) fell by over 1.3 million during March and April. Overall, this represents a 17% decline in ambulatory services employment.
But physician offices were some of the first businesses to reopen after the pandemic forced shutdowns. We also saw employment within the ambulatory services sector begin to recover in May. That recovery has continued into August 2020 as a total of 960,000 jobs (or a gain of 15%) have been added. So, while we are still slightly underneath February employment peaks, it is safe to say the ambulatory services sector is well on its way to full employment recovery.
