With Las Vegas expected to reach a population of 3 million by 2042, health care in an already underserved community and attracting medical professionals will become more important than ever.
Today, health care is No. 3 in employment in the region and is forecast to be No. 2 in the next three years, second only to the casino and hospitality industry, according to Andrew Woods, director of UNLV’s Center for Business and Economic Research. Health care can help drive economic diversification in the future, according to Woods who recently hosted a panel discussion on the topic.
“In almost every other metropolitan area in the country, health care is their largest sector for employment with a few rare exceptions,” Woods said. “It can play a much larger role in our economy. It’s one of the fastest-growing industries in Southern Nevada. We’re forecasting another 25,947 workers in health care in the next 10 years. That means we need another 55,000 jobs if we want to catch up with the national average. What we see is investing in this industry is investing in economic diversification. That’s why it’s important we’re investing in health care as much as we are in leisure and hospitality, manufacturing and other great industries that we have here.”