According to a study done by the Iowa Hospital Association, Greene County Medical Center generated 354 jobs and contributed $15,627,696 to the county’s economy last year.

The study looks at the jobs, income, retail sales and sales tax produced by hospitals and the rest of the state’s health care sector.

In addition, community relations director Carla Offenburger says the medical center’s employees spend another $2,376,988 in retail sales and $142, 619 in state sales tax revenue.

As the county’s largest employer, chief executive officer Carl Behne says their top priority is patient care, but they are proud of their economic impact to the community.

The study also shows that all of Iowa’s 118 community hospitals directly employ 71,437 people with another 57,792 jobs outside of the hospital sector.  $4.2 billion in salaries and benefits are created with another $1.8 billion generated through other jobs that rely on hospitals.

The study is conducted every year by IHA.