West Virginia has the highest concentration of healthcare workers in the U.S., with 17% of its workforce employed in healthcare, according to a Becker’s analysis of federal employment data.
Becker’s analyzed May 2025 employment data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages. Healthcare workforce share was calculated by dividing employment in ambulatory healthcare services, hospitals and nursing and residential care facilities by total employment across all industries in each state and the District of Columbia. The estimates cover jobs subject to unemployment insurance and exclude the self-employed.
Nationwide, 13% of workers were employed in those three healthcare subsectors.
Here is how every state and the District of Columbia stack up:
Note: Figures are rounded to the nearest whole percent.
West Virginia — 17% healthcare workforce share
New York — 15%
Pennsylvania — 15%
Maine — 15%
Rhode Island — 14%
Delaware — 14%
Massachusetts — 14%
Minnesota — 14%
Ohio — 14%
South Dakota — 14%
Louisiana — 14%
Connecticut — 14%
Missouri — 14%
Alaska — 13%
Indiana — 13%
Mississippi — 13%
Vermont — 13%
New Jersey — 13%
Arkansas — 13%
Maryland — 13%
Montana — 13%
North Dakota — 13%
Michigan — 13%
Florida — 13%
Idaho — 13%
Arizona — 13%
Nebraska — 13%
Kansas — 13%
New Mexico — 13%
New Hampshire — 13%
United States — 13%
Kentucky — 13%
Alabama — 13%
Oklahoma — 13%
North Carolina — 12%
Tennessee — 12%
Oregon — 12%
Illinois — 12%
Wisconsin — 12%
South Carolina — 12%
Georgia — 12%
Texas — 12%
Iowa — 11%
California — 11%
Colorado — 11%
Virginia — 11%
Washington — 11%
Wyoming — 11%
Utah — 10%
Hawaii — 10%
Nevada — 9%
District of Columbia — 8%
Source: Becker’s analysis of Bureau of Labor Statistics Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, May 2025.
Editor’s note: This article was updated on June 2.
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