Clinical Lab Tech Pay in the Great Lakes Region

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) published data recently that put clinical laboratory technician and technologist employment at over 337,000 as of May 2024.  Just over 49,000 clinical lab tech positions were in the five-state Great Lakes region at that time.  For clinical lab techs, the Great Lakes region was a subpar one in terms of pay relative to the national average.  More than 77% of clinical lab techs in the region lived in one of the four Great Lakes region states where the annual mean wage for clinical lab techs lagged the national average. A closer review of BLS data from May 2024 yielded the following details about clinical lab tech pay in the Great Lakes region:

Clinical Lab Tech Pay in the Great Lakes Region

State	# Employed	Annual Mean Wages	Wage Rank*
IL	11,200	$68,680	16th
IN	8,610	$58,450	39th
MI	9,220	$60,650	32nd
OH	13,160	$62,730	27th
WI	6,960	$64,470	23rd
U.S.	337,740	$65,012	-------

(*) annual mean wage ranking among the 50 states

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics OES. Data extracted on May 28, 2025

A mental health HPSA (health professional shortage area) is a facility, geographic unit, or population group designated by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) as having substandard availability of basic mental health care services. This designation reflects there being too few mental health care practitioners serving the community relative to the size of the population.  As of March 31, 2025, the HRSA reported that nearly 122.4 million Americans lived in a mental health care shortage area.

As of March 31, 2025, more than 21.6 million residents of the five-state Great Lakes region lived in a mental health care shortage area.  To eliminate that shortfall, the HRSA estimates that Great Lakes region HPSA's would need 923 additional mental health care providers servicing these communities.  A state-level examination of 3/31/25 HRSA data reveals the following about the mental health care shortfall in the Great Lakes region:

The Mental Health Care Shortfall in the Great Lakes Region

State	(1) HPSAs	(2) Population	(3) Shortfall
IL	211	6,540,212	291
IN	100	5,065,898	211
MI	233	3,690,930	144
OH	135	4,763,137	207
WI	168	1,574,202	70
Region	847	21,634,379	923
U.S.	6,418	122,383,988	6,202

(1) HRSA-designated Geographic Units, Population Groups, and Facilities with a mental health care shortfall

(2) Population of designated HPSAs

(3) Mental Health Care practitioners needed to remove HPSA Designation

Source:  Designated HPSA Quarterly Summary, March 31, 2025 (HRSA)

A geographic area, facility, or population unit where individuals have substandard access to basic medical care because there are too few primary care physicians relative to the community's population size can be designated a primary care HPSA (health professional shortage area) by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA).  As of March 31, 2025, more than 77.2 million Americans lived in primary care HPSAs.  This included 1.5 million people who lived in the six-state New England region.  The HRSA estimates that to eliminate this primary care shortage, New England HPSAs would need 188 more primary care physicians.  A closer study of 3/31/25 HRSA data reveals the following state-level breakdown of the primary care shortfall in New England:

The Primary Care Shortfall in New England

State	(1) HPSAs	(2) Population	(3) Shortfall
CT	46	694,859	53
MA	61	471,369	94
ME	76	85,155	18
NH	22	112,513	10
RI	13	137,033	13
VT	13	1,580	0
Region	231	1,502,509	188
U.S.	7,749	77,253,848	13,364

(1) HRSA-designated Geographic Units, Population Groups, and Facilities with a primary care shortfall

(2) Population of designated HPSAs

(3) Primary Care practitioners needed to remove the HPSA Designation

Source:  Designated HPSA Quarterly Summary, 3/31/25 (HRSA)

Nurse Practitioner Pay in the U.S. Southeast

Earlier this summer the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported that more than 303,000 nurse practitioners (NPs) were employed in the United States as of May 2024.  The twelve-state U.S. Southeast accounted for 93,630 NP jobs in May 2024.  The U.S. Southeast region is the weakest in the nation for nurse practitioner pay.  The average NP annual mean wage in every state in the region is below the national average, and the region is home to seven of the ten worst states in the nation for nurse practitioner annual mean wages.  A further examination of BLS data from May 2024 shows the following about nurse practitioner pay in the U.S. Southeast:

Nurse Practitioner Pay in the U.S. Southeast

State	# Employed	Annual Mean Wages	Wage Rank*
AL	4,730	$109,650	48th
AR	3,350	$116,030	46th
FL	24,690	$128,340	24th
GA	10,580	$125,490	35th
KY	4,710	$116,930	45th
LA	4,480	$124,850	36th
MS	4,170	$122,930	39th
NC	8,020	$124,830	37th
SC	5,850	$113,950	47th
TN	14,300	$108,180	49th
VA	6,470	$122,180	41st
WV	2,280	$122,140	42nd
U.S.	303,410	$130,077	-------

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

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics OES. Data extracted on May 20, 2025

March 31, 2025, data available from the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) indicated that over 59.7 million Americans lived in areas designated as dental health professional shortage areas (HPSA).  A dental health HPSA is a population group, geographic unit, or facility where the community has poor access to basic dental care because not enough dentists serve the area relative to the HPSA's population.  HPSAs in the six-state Far Western U.S. had more than 7 million residents who lived in dental care shortage areas.  The HRSA estimates that HPSAs in the Far West would need more than 1,000 additional dentists in order to eliminate the dental care shortfall in the region.  From the HRSA's March 31, 2025, data, here is a state-level summary of the dental care shortfall in the Far Western U.S.:

The Dental Care Shortfall in the Far Western U.S.

State	(1) HPSAs	(2) Population	(3) Shortfall
AK	339	411,622	59
CA	529	2,740,227	427
HI	32	196,213	33
NV	65	797,261	154
OR	137	1,029,448	158
WA	192	1,908,466	194
Region	1,294	7,083,237	1,025
U.S.	7,054	59,718,174	10,143

(1) HRSA-designated Geographic Units, Population Groups, and Facilities with a dental care shortfall

(2) Population of designated HPSAs

(3) Dental Care practitioners needed to remove HPSA Designation

Source:  Designated HPSA Quarterly Summary, 3/31/25 (HRSA)

Geographic units, population groups, and facilities where residents have substandard access to mental health care services can be designated as a health professional shortage area (HPSA) by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA).  This designation can be based on either the size of the HPSA's population relative to (a) the number of psychiatrists that serve the community, or (b) the combined number of psychiatrists, clinical social workers, clinical psychologists, and certain other types of mental health care practitioners who service the area.  A shortfall indicates that the number of actual practitioners serving the HPSA is lower than what would be expected for the number of residents living in the designated area.

Based on March 31, 2025 HRSA data, nearly 122.4 million Americans lived in mental health HPSAs.  That included 18.7 million residents of the four-state U.S. Southwest.  To eliminate the mental health care shortfall in the Southwest, the HRSA estimated that an additional 937 mental health care practitioners would be needed to service mental health HPSAs in the region.  A state-level look at HRSA data as of March 31, 2025 reveals the following about the mental health care shortfall in the Southwest:

The Mental Health Care Shortfall in the Southwest

State	(1) HPSAs	(2) Population	(3) Shortfall
AZ	206	2,074,757	144
NM	96	1,362,121	73
OK	129	1,911,019	106
TX	382	13,394,834	614
Region	813	18,742,731	937
U.S.	6,418	122,383,988	6,202

(1) HRSA-designated Geographic Units, Population Groups, and Facilities with a mental health care shortfall

(2) Population of designated HPSAs

(3) Mental Health Care practitioners needed to remove HPSA Designation

Source:  Designated HPSA Quarterly Summary, March 31, 2025 (HRSA)

Family Medicine Physician Pay in the Southwest

Information published earlier this year by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) put the number of employed family medicine physicians in the U.S. at more than 104,000 as of May 2024.  According to BLS data, the four-state Southwest U.S. region is a standout for family medicine pay, employing about 13,800 physicians in the field. Each state in the region reported annual mean wages at or above the national average, with New Mexico and Arizona both placing in the top ten for highest-paying states. A closer review of May 2024 BLS data details the following about family medicine physician pay in the Southwest:

Family Medicine Physician Pay in the Southwest

State	# Employed	Annual Mean Wages	Wage Rank*
AZ	3,820	$306,890	3rd
NM	710	$291,980	8th
OK	2,780	$253,090	26th
TX	6,510	$270,420	16th
U.S.	104,780	$253,047	-------

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

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics OES. Data extracted on May 16, 2025

The Ten Largest General Hospitals in Ohio

Based on Fourth Quarter 2024 Medicare Provider of Services file certified bed count data, the ten largest general hospitals in Ohio are:

• Cleveland Clinic
  Location:  Cleveland, OH
  Certified Bed Count:  1,267
  
  
• Summa Health
  Location:  Akron, OH
  Certified Bed Count:  1,061
  
  
• UH Cleveland Medical Center
  Location:  Cleveland, OH
  Certified Bed Count:  1,037
  
  
• Riverside Methodist Hospital
  Location:  Columbus, OH
  Certified Bed Count:  1,000
  
  
• Ohio State University Hospital
  Location:  Columbus
  Certified Bed Count:  971
  
  
• Miami Valley Hospital
  Location:  Dayton
  Certified Bed Count:  970
  
  
• Mount Carmel East
  Location:  Columbus
  Certified Bed Count:  937
  
  
• Promedica Toledo Hospital
  Location:  Toledo
  Certified Bed Count:  794
  
  
• Genesis Healthcare System
  Location:  Zanesville
  Certified Bed Count:  767
  
  
• MetroHealth System
  Location:  Cleveland
  Certified Bed Count:  702
  

Supplemental resource:  Top Ranked Teaching Hospitals in the Great Lakes Region

The Ten Largest General Hospitals in Florida

Certified bed count data from the Fourth Quarter 2024 Medicare Provider of Services file reveal the following to be the ten largest general hospital providers in Florida:

• AdventHealth Orlando
  Location:  Orlando, FL
  Certified Bed Count:  3,289
  
  
• Jackson Memorial Hospital
  Location:  Miami, FL
  Certified Bed Count:  2,255
  
  
• Orlando Health Orlando Regional Medical Center
  Location:  Orlando, FL
  Certified Bed Count:  2,024
  
  
• Baycare / St. Joseph's Hospital
  Location:  Tampa
  Certified Bed Count:  1,390
  
  
• Baptist Medical Center Jacksonville
  Location:  Jacksonville, FL
  Certified Bed Count:  1,229
  
  
• Memorial Regional Hospital
  Location:  Hollywood
  Certified Bed Count:  1,079
  
  
• UF Health Shands Hospital
  Location:  Gainesville
  Certified Bed Count:  1,054
  
  
• Tampa General Hospital
  Location:  Tampa
  Certified Bed Count:  1,041
  
  
• Baptist Hospital of Miami
  Location:  Miami
  Certified Bed Count:  948
  
  
• Sarasota Memorial Hospital
  Location:  Sarasota
  Certified Bed Count:  897

Supplemental resource:  Top Ranked Teaching Hospitals in the Southeast

Speech Language Pathologist Pay in New England

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) employment data released earlier this year reported nearly 173,910 speech language pathologists (SLPs) at work in the United States as of May 2024.  About 9,840 SLPs were employed in the six-state New England region according to the BLS data.  New England is a relatively good region for speech language pathologist pay, notwithstanding the fact that Maine and Vermont ranked among the ten worst states in the country for SLP annual mean wages. Despite the poor pay environment in those states, 80% of SLPs in New England lived in one of three states in the region that ranked among the fifteen best states in the nation for speech language pathologist annual mean wage levels. A closer review of May 2024 BLS data reveals the following details about speech language pathologist pay in New England:

Speech Language Pathologist Pay in New England

State	# Employed	Annual Mean Wages	Wage Rank*
CT	2,160	$103,460	8th
MA	5,000	$99,570	13th
ME	610	$80,100	44th
NH	790	$86,900	29rd
RI	810	$100,40	12th
VT	470	$81,890	43rd
U.S.	173,910	$91,089	-------

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

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics OES. Data extracted on May 9, 2025

Clinical Lab Tech Pay in the Far Western U.S.

More than 337,000 clinical laboratory technicians and technologists were working in the United States as of May 2024 according to the most recent occupational employment data released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).  Just under 44,500 of the nation's employed clinical lab techs were working in the six-state Far Western U.S. region.  For clinical lab techs, the Far West was one of the very best regions in the nation in terms of pay.  Nearly every state in the region had an average annual mean wage level for clinical lab techs that topped the national average. Moreover, three states in the region ranked in the top 10 nationally for clinical lab tech annual mean wages.  A closer examination of BLS data from May 2024 reveals the following details about clinical lab tech pay in the Far Western U.S.:

Clinical Lab Tech Pay in the Far Western U.S.

State	# Employed	Annual Mean Wages	Wage Rank*
AK	700	$71,590	12th
CA	29,460	$76,690	6th
HI	1,260	$70,030	14th
NV	2,270	$63,600	24th
OR	3,020	$78,530	4th
WA	7,740	$73,280	10th
U.S.	337,740	$65,012	-------

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

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics OES. Data extracted on May 7, 2025

Data released recently from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported that, as of May 2024, more than 287,000 dental assistants were working in the United States.  About 24,000 dental assistants at work in May 2024 lived in the seven-state Great Plains region of the country.  BLS data reveals much disparity in the Great Plains region for dental assistant pay.  Dental assistants in Minnesota enjoy the highest average annual mean wage in the country, and North Dakota is another top 10 state for dental assistant annual mean wages.  However, about 53% of the region's dental assistants work in one of three states that rank 31st or worse for average annual mean wages for the profession.  A deeper dive into May 2024 BLS data details the following about dental assistant pay in the Great Plains region of the U.S.:

Dental Assistant Pay in the Great Plains Region

State	# Employed	Annual Mean Wages	Wage Rank*
IA	3,540	$49,020	24th
KS	3,020	$42,490	42nd
MN	5,590	$63,680	1st
MO	7,380	$45,390	37th
NE	2,360	$46,300	31st
ND	920	$54,720	7th
SD	1,240	$49,080	23rd
U.S.	287,780	$48,225	-------

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

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics OES. Data extracted on May 5, 2025

The Ten Largest General Hospitals in Texas

According to certified bed count data in the Fourth Quarter 2024 Medicare Provider of Services file, the ten largest general hospitals in Texas were:

• Methodist Hospital
  Location:  San Antonio
  Certified Bed Count:  2,465
  
  
• Memorial Hermann Hospital System
  Location:  Houston
  Certified Bed Count:  1,515
  
  
• Houston Methodist Hospital
  Location:  Houston
  Certified Bed Count:  1,299
  
  
• Baptist Medical Center
  Location:  San Antonio
  Certified Bed Count:  1,285
  
  
• Christus Spohn Hospital Corpus Christi
  Location:  Corpus Christi, TX
  Certified Bed Count:  1,040
  
  
• Memorial Hermann - Texas Medical Center
  Location:  Houston
  Certified Bed Count:  1,034
  
  
• University Health System
  Location:  San Antonio, TX
  Certified Bed Count:  1,034
  
  
• Harris Health System
  Location:  Houston
  Certified Bed Count:  975
  
  
• Parkland Health and Hospital System
  Location:  Dallas
  Certified Bed Count:  968
  
  
• Medical City Dallas Hospital
  Location:  Dallas
  Certified Bed Count:  963

Supplemental resource:  Top Ranked Teaching Hospitals in the Southwest

The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) designates as primary care health professional shortage areas (HPSA) those geographic units, population groups, or facilities where residents have substandard access to basic medical care. This designation indicates that there is a shortfall in the actual number of primary care physicians practicing in an area relative to the standard number normally needed to serve a population the size of the one found in the HPSA.  As of March 31, 2025, more than 77.2 million Americans lived in HRSA designated primary care shortage areas.  That figure included over 2.5 million residents of the five-state Rocky Mountain region.  The HRSA estimated that to eliminate the primary care shortfall in the region, Rocky Mountain area HPSAs would need 408 additional primary care physicians.  A more detailed breakdown of 3/31/25 HRSA data reveals the following about the primary care shortfall in the Rocky Mountain region:

The Primary Care Shortfall in the Rocky Mountain Region

State	(1) HPSAs	(2) Population	(3) Shortfall
CO	120	836,096	159
ID	100	514,455	99
MT	134	315,114	54
UT	62	676,475	73
WY	41	182,633	23
Region	457	2,524,733	408
U.S.	7,749	77,253,848	13,364

(1) HRSA-designated Geographic Units, Population Groups, and Facilities with a primary care shortfall

(2) Population of designated HPSAs

(3) Primary Care practitioners needed to remove the HPSA Designation

Source:  Designated HPSA Quarterly Summary, 3/31/25 (HRSA)

Nurse Practitioner Pay in the Great Lakes Region

The latest occupational employment data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) put nurse practitioner (NP) employment in the U.S. at more than 303,000 as of May 2024.  With over 44,400 employed nurse practitioners, the five-state Great Lakes region accounted for 15% of all nurse practitioner jobs nationally in May 2024.  While one of the better regions in the U.S. for nurse practitioner employment, pay for NPs in the region was rather weak.  NP annual mean wages in all Great Lakes states, but one, were below the national average for the profession, with Ohio ranking among the bottom ten states nationally for nurse practitioner annual mean wages.  Further examination of May 2024 BLS data shows the following about nurse practitioner pay in the Great Lakes region:

Nurse Practitioner Pay in the Great Lakes Region

State	# Employed	Annual Mean Wages	Wage Rank*
IL	9,560	$128,880	23rd
IN	7,470	$126,520	33rd
MI	7,900	$127,200	29th
OH	14,550	$121,250	43rd
WI	4,950	$130,490	21st
U.S.	303,410	$130,077	-------

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

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics OES. Data extracted on May 1, 2025