Physician Assistant Salaries are the Highest in these Five States
Physician assistants (PAs) are healthcare professionals who diagnose and treat patients in many of the same ways as doctors. Rather than attending medical school, PAs complete a two-year Master’s degree program before starting work. Click here if you’d like to learn more about becoming a PA.
In some states, PAs practice under the supervision of physicians. In other states, PAs have the freedom to work on their own. Either way, these healthcare workers fill an essential role in an era when the demand for healthcare is increasing while the number of new doctors entering the profession is decreasing. As a result, the demand for PAs is rising rapidly — as are salaries.
With growing demand and rising salaries, it’s easy to understand why more and more people are choosing to pursue a career as a PA. As with many jobs, however, where you work plays a role in how much PAs earn.
Top-Paying Industries for Physician Assistants
According to recent Bureau of Labor Statistics reporting, in 2018, the median Physician Assistant income was $106,860 per year. That’s a middle number, meaning half of PAs earned more than $106,860, and the other half earned less. If you’re looking to maximize your income, these are the top-paying industries for PAs:
- Non-teaching hospitals: $110,000.
- University hospitals: $103,000.
- Government: $103,000.
- Outpatient care centers: $102,000.
- Multispecialty physician practice: $101,750.
The least profitable industries for PAs include certified rural health clinics ($97,500), community health clinics ($95,500), and physician solo practices ($93,000). In addition to income variations within industries, individual states pay PAs much more than others.
Top Five States for PA Salaries
The online staffing company ZipRecruiter compared salaries in all 50 states to determine where PAs earned the most. The five states with the highest average annual PA salaries include:
- New York: $116,487.
- Massachusetts: $115,045.
- New Hampshire: $113,329.
- Maryland: $108,066.
- Connecticut: $107,158.
According to ZipRecruiter, PAs working in North Carolina earned $82,242, which is just 77% of the median nationwide PA salary. Of course, these numbers don’t take into account other important factors like cost of living, commute time, or work hours, which could make a higher-paying position much less attractive.
Physician Assistant Solutions Can Help You Find Your Next Position
If you’re searching for the perfect PA position, Physician Assistant Solutions can help. We’re physician assistant recruiters 100% owned and operated by PAs. That means we understand what PAs need and want from their work, and we help our clients achieve that.
We offer PAs help with contract negotiations, detailed resumé advice, interview tips, and ongoing placement if you’re not immediately hired. Even better, we offer all these services at zero cost for our PAs. You can get started by creating your account and searching all our available positions online.
Currently, Physician Assistant Solutions has open positions in New York, Massachusetts, and Maryland — and typically have one or two new openings in those states every month. So if you’d like help finding a job you love while maximizing your income in the process, don’t wait. Your dream job is closer than you may think!