Thanks to broader benefits and usually lower costs than Original Medicare coverage, Medicare Advantage (MA) Plans have much to offer budget-minded Medicare-eligible individuals. Despite utilizing managed care protocols to control costs, MA plans have been attracting growing numbers of Medicare-eligible seniors away from traditional Medicare coverage.  In a bit more than seven and one-half years, from October 2016 through May 2024, the market share of MA plans across the U.S. has grown from under 31% of Medicare-eligible Americans to 50%.

The growing popularity of Medicare Advantage plans nationally is reflected in the four-state Southwest region of the U.S., where MA plan enrollment has grown from a 31.1% share of the Medicare-eligible market in October 2016 to 51.3% as of May 2024.  Here is a state-by-state look at how Medicare Advantage market share in the Southwest has expanded from October 2016 to May 2024:

Medicare Advantage Market Share in the Southwest

	Medicare Eligible (1)			MA Enrollment (1)			% MA Market Share
Area	May-24	Oct-16		May-24	Oct-16		May-24	Oct-16
AZ	1,482.1	1,186.6		751.1	450.6		50.7%	38.0%
NM	460.0	386.3		229.3	124.8		49.8%	32.3%
OK	797.7	698.8		323.1	119.0		40.5%	17.0%
TX	4,712.1	3,778.6		2,522.0	1,185.4		53.5%	31.4%
Region	7,451.9	6,050.2		3,825.5	1,879.8		51.3%	31.1%
Total(2)	66,833.3	56,888.7		33,419.9	17,489.5		50.0%	30.7%

(1) in thousands; region totals may not equal the sum of individual states due to rounding adjustments

(2) includes U.S. territories

Source:  Medicare Monthly Enrollment Reports

There were 3,072,700 registered nurses (RNs) working in the U.S. as of May 2022 according to recently released statistical data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).  The majority of RNs work in hospitals, with smaller numbers employed in skilled nursing facilities, physician offices, home health care agencies, and outpatient care centers. Like many other healthcare professionals with advanced training, registered nurses usually earn higher salaries than workers in most other occupations.  Per BLS estimates, as of May 2022, the national mean wage for registered nurses was $89,010 per year.  The annual median wage, which is the wage level that divides the lower half of earners from the higher half, for registered nurses was $81,220 per year.  Federal data also revealed that about 41.5% of all RN jobs in the U.S. were in the nation's 25 largest metropolitan areas. Average pay levels for registered nurses varied significantly among the top 25 U.S. metro areas, with mean wage levels ranging from under $80,000 a year in four top 25 metro areas to more than $100,000 annually in eight other top metro markets.  A closer examination of May 2022 federal data revealed that the registered nurse average pay in the top 25 U.S. metro markets looked as follows:

Registered Nurse Average Pay in the Top 25 U.S. Metro Markets

	Area Name		Median Annual Wage	Mean Annual Wage
1	New York-Newark-Jersey City		$103,540	$104,860
2	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim		$128,960	$125,350
3	Chicago-Naperville-Elgin		$80,150	$85,260
4	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington		$82,200	$87,850
5	Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land		$82,340	$88,880
6	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria		$85,760	$92,800
7	Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington		$84,690	$87,830
8	Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach		$79,870	$81,810
9	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Alpharetta		$82,850	$90,270
10	Boston-Cambridge-Newton		$99,750	$106,980
11	Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler		$82,620	$87,410
12	San Francisco-Oakland-Berkeley		$173,510	$164,760
13	Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario		$122,190	$121,470
14	Detroit-Warren-Dearborn		$81,050	$82,000
15	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue		$102,680	$105,540
16	Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington		$86,950	$92,190
17	San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad		$118,270	$117,830
18	Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater		$78,830	$79,920
19	Denver-Aurora-Lakewood		$82,710	$87,790
20	Baltimore-Columbia-Towson		$83,850	$89,510
21	St. Louis, MO-IL		$77,390	$75,170
22	Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford		$76,970	$79,120
23	Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia		$79,120	$79,530
24	San Antonio-New Braunfels		$79,020	$83,040
25	Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro		$108,290	$111,610
	National		$81,220	$89,010

Report Period:  May 2022
Top 25 U.S. Metro Areas from the 2020 Census
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Occupational Statistics
Data extracted on June 17, 2023