The NCCPA’s 2023 Statistical Profile of Board Certified PAs by State offers a comprehensive analysis of PA roles in each state, including practice disciplines, settings and locations, job satisfaction, burnout and salaries.

NCCPA President and CEO Dawn Morton-Rias, Ed.D, PA-C, ICE-CCP, FACHE, said the report also includes new data tables on income by gender, rural practice and addressing mental health needs.

“These findings reinforce the indispensable role of PAs in our health care system,” Morton-Rias said. “The data provides valuable insights for shaping future workforce strategies.”

Gender Pay Gap Among PAs

A gender-based pay gap exists within the PA profession, according to income data broken down by state. This data was gathered by asking PAs to estimate their total income from all PA positions during the previous calendar year.

Nationally, male PAs earn an average of $19,802 more than their female colleagues. While a pay gap exists across all states, in Oklahoma, the average male PA earns $25,777 more than the average female PA. Alaska has the smallest disparity, a $11,852 difference.

“These findings underscore the need for further investigation into the factors contributing to this inequity and for proactive measures to ensure fair and equitable compensation for all PAs,” Morton-Rias said.

PA Pay by State
PA compensation varies significantly by state. California PAs earned the highest average income in 2023 at $143,074, an 11.5% increase from 2019. Nevada PAs averaged $137,295 in 2023, up 6.9% from 2019. Connecticut PAs saw an 11.1% increase, with average earnings of $135,312.

PA Job Satisfaction
PAs continue to report high levels of job satisfaction ranging from 77.3% in Rhode Island to 87.3% in Alabama. Overall job satisfaction with geographic location remains high with Washington D.C. (89.2%), followed closely by Montana (87.4%) and Utah (87.0%). While Mississippi (71.2%), North Dakota (76.7%) and Nevada (77.9%) report lower job satisfaction related to location.

PA Burnout
Burnout, defined as experiencing one or more burnout symptoms, impacts 34.2% of all PAs. The highest burnout rates are observed in Vermont (41.9%), Maine (41.6%) and New Hampshire (40.3%). While the lowest burnout rates are reported in Mississippi (27.1%), Alaska (28.9%) and Nebraska (29.9%).

PAs in Mental Health
The report highlights the roles of PAs in mental health care. Oregon (46.5%), Maine (46.0%) and Vermont (45.8%) have the highest percentages of daily patient encounters requiring mental health treatment.

PAs in Rural and Underserved Areas

PAs are essential at providing care in Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSAs) and Medically Underserved Areas (MUAs).

In Alaska, 56.1% of PAs work in HPSAs or MUAs, followed by 54.3% in New Mexico, 45.9% in Montana and 45.4% in West Virginia.

Rural care is another area where PAs make a significant impact. In Vermont, 20.5% of PAs work in isolated areas, while in Wyoming, 52.3% practice in rural settings.

Additional key findings:

– The flexibility of changing specialties is a hallmark of the PA profession. Career specialty changes (two or more) were most common in Maine (40.4%), West Virginia (38.5%) and Wyoming (37.7%) and least common in Washington D.C. (21.0%), Minnesota (22.9%) and Massachusetts (24.9%).

– The percentage of PAs working in primary care (family medicine, general practice, internal medicine and pediatrics) varies across the U.S. Alaska leads with 43.4% of PAs in primary care, though this represents a 5.8% decline since 2019. North Dakota follows with 40.7%, a 5.6% decline since 2019. Wyoming rounds out the top three at 38.8%, a 6.8% decline since 2019.

– Principal place of employment is recruiting: PA recruitment was highest in Washington D.C. (57.1%), Connecticut (53.3%) and New York (52.0%), which have the highest percentage of employers actively seeking to hire PAs.

“While we celebrate the high job satisfaction rates and the dedication to patient care, particularly in mental health, the gender income gap and the concerning levels of burnout demand our attention,” Morton-Rias said. “We must work together to address these challenges and ensure a more equitable and sustainable future for PAs.”

To read and download the report, click here.