Statewide, New York was home to the highest number of physician assistants in the country in 2014 according to the US Bureau of labor Statistics, and more PAs were located in the New York City area than any other metropolitan area in the country.
However, despite the large number of physician assistants in the state, demand currently outstrips supply. More than half of the respondents to a 2014 survey of local employers conducted by the Healthcare Association of New York State reported having difficulty recruiting physician assistants. As demand continues to grow, local employers are offering very attractive compensation packages to retain experienced PAs and newly licensed professionals alike.
Job Growth Projections and the Factors Contributing to Growth
According to the 2014 survey conducted by the Healthcare Association of New York State, the number of physician assistants is expected to increase dramatically in a number of health care settings in New York between 2014 and 2015:
- Outpatient settings: 52%
- Inpatient settings: 41%
- Ambulatory care settings: 40%
The New York State Department of Labor predicts the number of physician assistants to increase by 29.3% between 2012 and 2022. Growth is expected to be much higher in several regions of New York:
- Hudson Valley: 40.9%
- Mohawk Valley: 38.9%
- Capital: 35.5%
These values may even underestimate the actual job prospects for physician assistants. In 2015, Forbes went so far as to describe the demand for PAs in New York as “unprecedented.”
The role that physician assistants are filling continues to expand in New York. According to a 2014 paper published by the National Governor’s Association on the role of physician assistants in health care delivery, PAs in New York are allowed to serve as the primary caregiver in a patient-centered medical home (PCMH) in accordance with patients’ requests.
The Impact of Location on Salaries for Physicians Assistants in New York
As of 2015, the median salary among physician assistants in New York was $5,160 more than the national median reported by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. The New York State Department of Labor reported that the median salary among physician assistants was $100,980, while experienced physician assistants earned an average of $112,110 and those new to the profession earned $80,840 on average.
Location had a significant impact on the salaries of physician assistants in New York, with those in the North County region earning higher salaries than their colleagues in other parts of the state:
The US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) provides an analysis of salary data fro physician assistants in New York’s metropolitan and nonmetropolitan area as of 2014. The median salary for physician assistants in the nonmetropolitan area of Capital/Northern New York was significantly higher than that of physician assistants in other parts of the state. In fact, the BLS reported that this area was the second highest paying nonmetropolitan area in the country for physician assistants: