The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) most current occupational employment data put pharmacist employment at nearly 325,500 jobs as of May 2022.  Just over 24,400 pharmacist jobs were in the seven-state Great Plains region at that time.  BLS data reveals the region to be a relatively weak one for pharmacist pay.  Although Minnesota ranked among the five best states for pharmacist annual mean wages, nearly 73% of the region's pharmacists lived in a state where the pharmacist annual mean wage level was below the profession's national average of $129,410.  Moreover, three states in the region ranked among the bottom third of all states in the nation for pharmacist annual mean wage levels.  BLS data from May 2022 offers the following details about pharmacist pay in the Great Plains region of the U.S.:

Pharmacist Pay in the Great Plains Region

State	# Employed	Annual Mean Wages	Wage Rank*
IA	2,790	$127,520	23rd
KS	3,290	$122,860	38th
MN	6,630	$136,950	5th
MO	7,280	$128,040	19th
NE	2,210	$121,340	44th
ND	1,010	$122,470	39th
SD	1,220	$128,390	17th
U.S.	325,480	$129,410	-------

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

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics OES. Data extracted on January 15, 2024