Recovery Period: The region’s

Recovery Period:

The region’s healthcare system is operating on all cylinders in the aftermath of the pandemic

As Florida continues its reopening after a year of COVID restrictions, healthcare systems in Greater Fort Lauderdale have largely handled the challenges due to large and diverse healthcare networks.

With a 1.9 million population, many being older retirees, Broward County already had the healthcare infrastructure in place – particularly nursing – to manage the pandemic, and its focus has turned to the vaccine distribution needed for recovery.

To date, Broward County has achieved vaccination rates topping 50% of the population, on par with the nation as a whole, and has been particularly effective in getting shots into the older population.

Among the areas of concern for the sector, however, is insurance. While the population as a whole is highly insured, the rising number of uninsured residents has only been exacerbated by job-loss-related factors. Advocates pushing for healthcare expansion statewide also have been met by stiff resistance in the state legislature.

Landscape Greater Fort Lauderdale is home to three major healthcare systems, two of which are public. In total, the healthcare system accounts for over 70,000 jobs in the county, a number that is growing. Healthcare is the most common employment sector within the county, with over 127,000, or 13.1%, of the population listed as Healthcare & Social Assistance workers, topping the Retail and Food Service industries.

The three leading healthcare systems are Broward Health, Memorial Healthcare and private, but nonprofit, Baptist Health South Florida. Additionally, Tenet Healthcare, Kindred Hospitals, Nova Southeastern University and a Cleveland Clinic satellite operate within Broward County.

Broward Health has over 30 locations throughout the county, including a network of community healthcare centers. Memorial Healthcare – including the Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital – plus a graduate medical education center, is one of the largest systems in the country. Baptist Health South Florida is the largest nonprofit healthcare organization in the South Florida region. Within Broward County, Baptist Health provides ambulatory and urgent care to the underserved community.

Out of the 1.9 million Broward residents, 85.4% have health coverage and 14.6% are uninsured. Of the ( )