What Is the Average Salary for a Medical Administrative Assistant?
Are you interested in working at a hospital or medical office? Do you have strong organizational abilities? Read on to learn about how much you could earn in a career as a medical administrative assistant.
Job Duties
Medical administrative assistants perform several clerical tasks, such as scheduling patient appointments and procedures, filing medical records, preparing invoices and communicating daily with patients, visitors, and doctors. You also might take on a small number of clinical duties, such as taking blood or setting up a medical room. You can gain preparation for the job from a community college or career training program.
Important Facts About Medical Administrative Assistants
| On-the-Job Training | May be provided through the employer for medical assistants who did not attend a postsecondary education program |
| Professional Certification | Not required, but five certifications available through the Institute for Credentialing Excellence |
| Key Skills | Clear oration, active listening, service oriented, meticulousness, reading comprehension, time management, clear writing, social awareness |
| Similar Occupations | Dental assistant, dental hygienist, nursing assistant, pharmacy technician, physical therapist assistant |
Job Outlook
The BLS reported that from 2021-2031, medical assistant jobs were projected to increase by 16%, which was much faster than the average. While most jobs were available in the offices of physicians, these professionals could also be found in hospitals, outpatient care centers and offices of other health practitioners.
Salary Overview
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported that the median annual salary for medical assistants, including those performing administrative tasks, was $37,190 in May 2021 (www.bls.gov). The bottom 10% of workers at that time made annual salaries of $29,070 or less, while the top 10% made annual wages of $48,170 or higher.
Salaries by Region
As of May 2021, Washington and the District of Columbia reported the highest annual mean wages with respective salaries of $47,320 and $46,690, according to the BLS. The BLS stated that Alaska, California, and Massachusetts were the next highest paying states, all with mean yearly salaries over $45,000 as of May 2021. New Mexico contained the highest area of concentration of jobs and location quotient in this occupation, with an average annual salary of $34,470 as of May 2021, according to BLS figures.
Salaries by Industry
Many medical administrative assistants work in places other than hospitals and physician offices. Insurance companies, employment services, colleges, universities, and professional schools, dental offices and scientific research and development services are all industries that look for medical administrative assistants.
Agencies, brokerages, and other insurance-related activities reported the highest mean salary for medical assistants, at $52,970 annually as of May 2021, according to the BLS. Equipment and supplies merchant wholesalers were the next highest paying industry, with a mean yearly wage of $48,940 at that time.
Physician offices hired the greatest number of medical assistants, and the average annual salary for workers in this field was $36,580 as of May 2020. Mean wages for other industries included $39,550 for general medical and surgical hospitals, $44,680 for outpatient care centers, $33,710 for offices of other health practitioners, and $38,840 for employment services.