The pay scale of a medical assistant might not very be high, but is quite decent actually. However, considering the amount of career opportunities in the future, this is a good career to pursue. Here’s a detailed article on the pay scale for medical assistants, and also some other facets related to this job.
With the increase in demand for better and effective medical services, many medical jobs have come into existence in the recent years. Some of these are directly associated with serving patients and assisting in surgical operations, whilst some of them are simple assisting jobs, in which the person is supposed to be assisting the doctor or the surgeon in various administrative and medical concerned operational procedures. One such job is that of a medical assistant. Medical assistants are vital employees in any medical organization, as they perform a wide range of duties and also work beyond their work hours in emergency situations. Along with the pay scale for medical assistants, some other aspects such as the job description and educational requirements are also discussed in the following segments.
Educational Requirements of a Medical Assistant
Becoming a medical assistant is not a difficult task. The first step involved in it is to obtain a higher secondary or a certificate of another equivalent technical course relevant to medical services. Further, to enter the health industry as a medical assistant, it is necessary to obtain the Associate of Applied Science degree from a Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP) accredited college. To become a certified medical assistant (CMA), you need to successfully complete the examination conducted for national certification.
Medical Assistant Job Description
Medical assistants are not only responsible for performing clinical assistance activities, but their job entails the execution of many more tasks, such as:
- The most important work of a medical assistant is to perform basic clinical activities. These include noting daily observations of a patient’s health, and reporting the same to the doctor, applying and changing dressings, assisting blood donors in blood donation activities, preserving medical records, patient history and producing them whenever required by the doctor, carrying out diagnostic procedures, and assisting in regular health check-ups.
- Apart from these clinical duties, the job as a medical assistant also involves management of the front desk of the clinic. At the front office, the medical assistant is responsible for replying to telephonic queries, arranging appointments, managing the day-to-day schedule of the surgeon, performing data entry operations, getting the registration forms filled by the patients, and receiving bills.
- Some administrative tasks included in the job profile of a medical assistant are maintaining various financial records and patient accounts, working on medical insurance claims, rendering medical billing services, establishing and maintaining contacts with vendors, insurance companies and suppliers of medical instruments, and day-to-day supplies, keeping a track of all the purchased material, its cost, and also the expiry date of medicines.
Medical Assistant Pay Scale
With regards to the average salary of a medical assistant, experience plays the most important role. The more experienced you are, the more will be your salary range. Therefore, it is quite possible that you would not get paid much in the initial days of your career. Besides experience, the size of the organization also matters a lot. The medical assistant salary range in bigger organizations with a large scope of duties is certainly more than in small health care clinics. At the start, the salary may be around $20,000 to $25,000, and with experience it can go up to $45,000 to $50,000 per year. Let’s have a look at the average salaries, state wise.
Medical Assistant Pay Scale
| Alabama | $32,000 |
| Alaska | $25,000 |
| Arizona | $27,000 |
| Arkansas | $30,000 |
| California | $33,000 |
| Colorado | $27,000 |
| Connecticut | $32,000 |
| Delaware | $29,000 |
| Dist. of Columbia | $35,000 |
| Florida | $29,000 |
| Georgia | $32,000 |
| Hawaii | $23,000 |
| Idaho | $27,000 |
| Illinois | $32,000 |
| Indiana | $32,000 |
| Iowa | $29,000 |
| Kansas | $27,000 |
| Kentucky | $28,000 |
| Louisiana | $24,000 |
| Maine | $30,000 |
| Maryland | $31,000 |
| Massachusetts | $35,000 |
| Michigan | $28,000 |
| Minnesota | $28,000 |
| Mississippi | $37,000 |
| Missouri | $30,000 |
| Montana | $30,000 |
| Nebraska | $25,000 |
| Nevada | $29,000 |
| New Hamp. | $32,000 |
| New Jersey | $32,000 |
| New Mexico | $27,000 |
| New York | $36,000 |
| N. Carolina | $29,000 |
| N. Dakota | $29,000 |
| Ohio | $29,000 |
| Oklahoma | $28,000 |
| Oregon | $28,000 |
| Pennsylvania | $27,000 |
| Rhode Island | $32,000 |
| S. Carolina | $27,000 |
| S. Dakota | $25,000 |
| Tennessee | $29,000 |
| Texas | $29,000 |
| Utah | $29,000 |
| Vermont | $31,000 |
| Virgin Islands | $36,000 |
| Virginia | $31,000 |
| Washington | $28,000 |
| West Virginia | $31,000 |
| Wisconsin | $25,000 |
| Wyoming | $33,000 |
Now you have got a fair understanding of the job description, educational requirements, and the pay scale for medical assistants. Start with a small clinic or any health care organization at the initial phase of your career. Handle all the tasks yourself and gain considerable knowledge and practical experience. Believe me, these two would serve as vital tools for quoting higher pay packages in larger organizations.