Emergency Medicine PA Guide

The average annual physician assistant salary is $130,020 per year in the United States, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. That being said, Becker’s Hospital Review reported that emergency medicine PAs earned an average annual salary of $130,689.

Locum tenens emergency medicine PAs can make upwards of $90-120 an hour, however, there are many factors that impact rates including location, years of experience, and the level of demand.

If you were to extrapolate the low end of this range over a year (at 40 hours per week), a locum tenens emergency medicine PA could make $187,200 per year or more.

That means locum tenens emergency medicine PAs could make 43% more per year than the average emergency medicine PA. Making direct salary comparisons between locum tenens and permanent providers can be complicated. While perm emergency medicine PAs are more likely to be salaried, locum tenens PAs are independent contractors earning an hourly rate, which can vary based on which assignments they take in a year.

Furthermore, because locum tenens emergency medicine PAs are paid by the hour, the hours they work are directly reflected in their pay, while a salaried PA’s additional hours may not be reflected in their salary.

Finally, paid time off and insurance may be reflected in the perm physician assistant salary structure, but locum tenens providers do have options when it comes to health insurance.

The most recent state breakdown of PA salaries comes from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, though the BLS was not able to collect enough data for all 50 states. That said, some of the top five highest paying states for PAs salary are:

• Nevada (Average PA Salary: $154,800)
• California (Average PA Salary: 153,960)
• Washington (Average PA Salary: 152,800)
• Connecticut (Average PA Salary: 149,300)
• Alaska (Average PA Salary: 148,480)

There is no specific information on the salaries for emergency medicine PAs, but the average for each state can be inferred.

How do Emergency Medicine PA Salaries Compare Against Other PA Specialties?

Emergency medicine PAs are the third highest-paid PA specialty surveyed in the Medscape 2022 compensation report. According to that report, emergency medicine PAs make more on average than surgery PAs ($138,000), orthopedics PAs ($134,000), and oncology PAs ($128,000).

Emergency medicine PA salaries have increased over the last several years, with a 6% increase in reported salary since 2023, according to Medscape’s 2024 report. If this continues, emergency medicine PAs can expect to earn more in 2024.

Check out and apply to our open locum tenens emergency medicine physician assistant jobs today!