According to the recent semiannual update of our US Staffing Industry Forecast, the healthcare staffing market in the US is projected to grow 6% this year and 5% in 2019 in terms of revenue. While this is below the outsized rate of expansion the market has enjoyed over the past few years, it nonetheless outpaces anticipated growth in the broader US temporary staffing industry.

Healthcare staffing growth over the last few years has been driven in large part by the increase in the number of insured, and the consequent rise in hospital admissions and clinical procedure volumes. Though the impact of the Affordable Care Act in this regard has largely leveled off at this point, demand remains high and the economic backdrop is favorable.

The tight supply of healthcare professionals has become a limiting factor on industry growth, though it has provided staffing firms some additional pricing power. Agencies have likewise had to boost the compensation they offer workers, constraining gross margin expansion, but we anticipate that bill rate increases will combine with incremental gains in the volume of hours billed to propel the market higher in 2018 and 2019.

Corporate members can access the full forecast report, including projections for the nurse, locum tenens and allied health sub-segments, by clicking here.