Minnesota Hospital Association

Policy & Advocacy

Hospitals' Impact on the Economy

Not only do Minnesota hospitals provide nation-leading care, but they are major contributors to our local and state economies. As the largest employers in many communities, Minnesota hospitals generated $31.1 billion in economic activity for the state in 2015. In addition to the more than 127,000 people directly employed by hospitals, another 105,000 jobs in the state are tied to health care.

  • The average hospital in Minnesota employs 264 people, with the largest hospitals employing more than 6,000 people, and more than 25 percent have more than 750 staff.
  • Hospitals provide a variety of high-quality, skilled jobs and hospital employees are generally better paid and better educated than most workers.
  • Minnesota’s 144 hospitals are nearly all nonprofit, so any margins achieved are invested in the community.

In addition to the economic impact, a strong hospital and health care system is vital to the economic development of communities. A strong health care system can help attract and retain residents and retirees and create jobs. Furthermore, good health care and education services are imperative to attracting new business. Quality health care contributes to productivity in the local workforce; prospective businesses desire communities with affordable, quality health care options when considering new locations.

National economic impact

The national economic impact of hospitals has shown steady increases over the years. In 1970, Americans spent $75 billion on health care, accounting for 7.2 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP). In 2008, health care spending increased to about $2.34 billion, or 16.2 percent of the GDP. If trends continue, Americans are projected to spend 19.3 percent of GDP on health care by 2019.