By Heather Punke

The healthcare industry added 36,500 jobs in June, with hospitals contributing 11,700 of those jobs, according to Friday's job report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Ambulatory healthcare services added 26,000 jobs last month, while nursing and residential care facilities lost 1,200 jobs in June.

In the first half of 2017, healthcare added an average of 24,000 jobs per month, so June's additions beat the average. However, the industry added an average of 32,000 jobs per month in 2016.

Diane Swonk, the founder of Chicago-based DS Economics, told The New York Times she contributes the slower hiring pace to uncertainty around the future of health insurance coverage.

Overall, the nation added 222,000 jobs last month, beating estimates from economists. However, the unemployment rate ticked up slightly — 4.4 percent in June compared to 4.3 percent in May.