Wednesday, March 4, 2026

Nursing Assistant Pay in the Far West U.S.

There were more than 1,388,000 nursing assistants working in the USA according to May 2024 data released earlier this year by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Over 158,200 nursing assistants were employed in the six-state Far West region of the country.  Per BLS data, the Far West U.S. was the top region in the country for nursing assistant pay. Not only did all states in the region feature an annual mean wage for nursing assistants that topped the national average, but all six Far West states ranked among the top fifteen states nationally for nursing assistant pay. Moreover, four of the top five states nationally for nursing assistant annual mean wages were in the Far West region. A further examination of BLS data from May 2024 reveals the following about nursing assistant pay in the Far West U.S.:

Nursing Assistant Pay in the Far West U.S.

Nursing Assistant Pay in the Far West U.S.

State # Employed Annual Mean Wages Wage Rank*
AK 1,660 $48,550 4th
CA 102,380 $48,790 3rd
HI 4,620 $45,480 11th
NV 8,670 $44,360 15th
OR 12,800 $49,970 1st
WA 28,080 $49,9602nd
U.S. 1,388,510 $41,173 -------

(*) annual mean wage ranking among the 50 states and the District of Columbia

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics OES. Data extracted on March 4, 2026

Tuesday, March 3, 2026

California Hospitals with Five-Star CMS Patient Survey Ratings

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) conducts regular surveys to ascertain adult patient perspectives on recent inpatient hospital stays at hospitals that treat Medicaid and Medicare participants. The methodology used by CMS involves collecting patient responses to questions about their recent hospital stays, then combining that information into a unified patient satisfaction rating on a 1 to 5-star scale, with the scale's top rating being five stars.  As of February 23, 2026, only six California hospitals earned five-stars on CMS patient surveys.  Among the six was Scripps Green Hospital (La Jolla), the only hospital in the state that also rated five-stars for quality in a separate CMS quality analysis.  From CMS patient satisfaction surveys, here are the only six California hospitals that rated as five-stars for patient experience (alphabetically listed):

California Hospitals with Five-Star CMS Patient Survey Ratings