Wound Care PA Salary Guide

The average annual PA salary is $126,010 per year in the U.S., according to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics. However, PAs make a total of $134,000 per year, according to Medscape’s 2023 physician assistant compensation report.  

This data represents PAs as a whole and can provide an estimate of the annual compensation for wound care PAs.

Locum tenens PAs can make upwards of $100 per hour on average, however, there are many factors that impact rates including specialty, location, years of experience, and the level of demand.

If you were to extrapolate that rate over a year (at 40 hours per week), the average locum salary comes out to around $208,000. 

That means locum tenens PA can make up to 65% more than the average provider, depending on this specialty. However, making direct salary comparisons can be complicated. While perm PAs are more likely to be salaried, locum tenens PAs are independent contractors earning an hourly rate, which can vary based on which assignments they take in a year. 

Furthermore, because locum tenens PAs are paid by the hour, the hours they work are directly reflected in their pay, while a salaried PAs additional hours may not be reflected in their salary.

Finally, paid time off and insurance may be reflected in the perm PAs salary structure, but locum tenens providers do have options when it comes to health insurance.

The most recent state breakdown of PA salaries comes from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, though the BLS was not able to collect enough data for all 50 states. That said, the top 5 highest paying states for PA salaries include:

• Alaska (PA Salary of $131,340- $145,390) 
• California (PA Salary of $131,340- $145,390) 
• Connecticut (PA Salary of $131,340- $145,390) 
• Nevada (PA Salary of $131,340- $145,390) 
• Washington (PA Salary of $131,340- $145,390)

This can provide insight into the possible highest paying states for wound care PA salaries.

Wound care PAs were not featured on the  American Associates of Physician Associates highest paying specialties report. The top five highest earning specialties (cardiovascular/cardiothoracic surgery, dermatology, emergency medicine, occupational, medicine, and critical care) earned up to $152,000 in annual compensation.

The average PA salary increased by 4% from 2022 to 2023. Based on this information, family practice PAs can expect to make $139,360 in annual compensation in 2024. Also, Medscape reports that 59% of PAs had an increase in their annual salaries from the previous year, indicating occupational medicine PA salaries will continue to rise in the future.