The latest U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data on physician assistant (PA) employment put the number of PAs employed at just over 140,900 as of May 2022.  The four-state Southwestern U.S. was home to about 14,300 of those physician assistants according to the BLS.  BLS data revealed PA pay levels in the region to be roughly on par with physician assistant pay levels in the U.S. as a whole, at least in terms of median annual wages.  In all four Southwestern states the median annual wage, which is the wage level that is the mid-point between the upper and lower half of wage earners, was slightly better than the national average.  A further examination of BLS data from May 2022 revealed the following about physician assistant pay in the Southwestern U.S.:

Physician Assistant Pay in the Southwestern U.S.

State	# Employed	Mean Annual Wage	Median Annual Wage
AZ	3,280	$122,420	$126,240
NM	690	$133,630	$127,880
OK	1,380	$116,710	$126,050
TX	8,930	$132,980	$127,330
U.S.	140,910	$125,270	$126,010

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics OES. Data extracted on August 13, 2023