Explore how New Jersey’s hospitals contribute to the state, county and local economies.
New Jersey hospitals are vital community anchors. Beyond their role protecting the health of New Jerseyans, hospitals serve as critical engines of their local economies. They are among the largest employers in their communities and support a host of local small businesses.
Our hospitals directly provide 154,500 full- and part-time jobs and more than $10 billion in annual salaries that support individuals, families and businesses statewide. These jobs provide a range of careers, such as food service, maintenance and housekeeping, in addition to clinicians.
Nationwide, hospitals are confronting the burden of rising expenses, labor shortages, government underfunding and sicker patients. Despite these challenging times, New Jersey hospitals continue to support the health of their communities through essential services, charity care, community benefits and as vital sources of jobs, income taxes and spending that help stabilize their communities and support businesses across the state.
All told, New Jersey hospitals directly contributed $29.5 billion to the state’s economy during 2021. That total includes:
- 154,500 full- and part-time jobs
- More than $10 billion in total employee salaries, generating $570 million in state income taxes
- $4.6 billion in purchases and services from other businesses.
The search function below provides detail by individual hospital, county, legislative and congressional district and more.
1The goods and services hospitals purchase from other businesses create additional economic value for the community, and estimated the use of factors (or “multipliers”) by which spending in one sector affects other sectors. For employment, these ripple effects mean that each hospital job results in a total of 2.3 jobs in the overall economy because hospital employees use their wages to purchase goods and services which creates income and jobs for other businesses. Similarly, each dollar spent by a hospital results in a total of $2.24 in overall economic output. New Jersey hospitals thus support approximately 355,000 total jobs and over $62 billion in economic activity statewide.
Source: American Hospital Association, Hospitals Remain Economic Pillars in Their Communities, Feb. 2022; analysis based on multipliers from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis’ Regional Input–Output Modeling System (BEA RIMS-II).