While West Virginia’s overall employment growth has been stagnant over the past year, one area of the economy that has seen continued growth is the health care sector. In fact, while total nonfarm employment in the state has fallen by 6,000 jobs over the past decade, employment in the health care and social assistance sector has grown by 19,300 jobs.
In 2024, employment in the health care and social assistance sector accounted for 18.7 percent of total nonfarm employment in the state. That was the highest percentage in the country, well above the national average of 14.3 percent.
Health care is also a significant driver of employment at the local level throughout the Mountain State, in some counties reaching nearly 30 percent of total employment.
Note: Counties without a value mean the data does not meet Bureau of Labor Statistics or Workforce West Virginia disclosure standards.
Notably, health care employers make up the top three employers in the state (WVU Medicine, Vandalia Health, and Marshall Health). In 48 of West Virginia’s 55 counties, a health care employer is in the top 10 employers.
With the health care sector being such a significant source of jobs and economic growth in West Virginia, proposed federal cuts to Medicaid represent a major threat to the state’s economy and its workers. According to the Congressional Budget Office, the “Big, Beautiful Bill” recently passed by the House of Representatives would cut Medicaid by more than $800 billion, the largest cut in the program’s history. And according to a study by the WVU Bureau of Business and Economic Research, just a $29 million federal cut and $10 million state cut to Medicaid in West Virginia would result in 520 lost jobs and a reduction of $49 million in overall annual economic output.
Not only would the proposed cuts to Medicaid result in 65,000 West Virginians losing health care coverage, but thousands of jobs and millions in GDP and state tax revenue throughout the state would be at risk. Our federal elected officials must prioritize the well-being of West Virginians and oppose any budget package that cuts Medicaid.
