How Much Does a Medical Assistant Make in Nebraska?
With the recent hike in the MA salary in Nebraska, it was seen that they were paid about $16-$17 an hour on an average, according to BLS and most of the other sources. Average annual salary, on the other hand, fell between the range of $29,000 to $35,000 as per various wage resources.
| Resource | Hourly Salary | Annual Salary | Date Updated |
|---|---|---|---|
| BLS | $16.90 | $35,140 | March 31, 2020 |
| Indeed | $16.46 | $38,323 | January 26, 2021 |
| ZipRecruiter | $14 | $29,681 | November 3, 2020 |
| Salary.com | $16 | $33,386 | January 29, 2021 |
Medical Assistant Pay at Different Percentiles in NE
| Percentile | Annual Salary (Nebraska) | Annual Salary (National) |
|---|---|---|
| 10% | $26,050 | $25,820 |
| 25% | $28,850 | $29,460 |
| 50% | $33,760 | $34,800 |
| 75% | $39,990 | $40,270 |
| 90% | $48,520 | $48,720 |
Source: BLS (as of March 31, 2020)
At the 10 percentile, the annual salary for medical assistants in Nebraska was higher than the responding national annual salary levels. However, for all the other percentiles, as can be seen above, the national annual salary figures were higher than that for MAs in NE.
Highest Paying Cities for Medical Assistants in NE
To know a medical assistant’s pay in Nebraska’s top 10 cities, have a look at the table below.
| City | Per Hour Salary (indeed.com) | Per Hour Salary (salary.com) |
|---|---|---|
| Omaha, NE | $16.56 | $17 |
| Grand Island, NE | $15.89 | $16 |
| Bellevue, NE | $15.68 | $17 |
| Papillion, NE | $14.56 | $17 |
| Kearney, NE | $13.74 | $16 |
| Lincoln, NE | $13.73 | $16 |
| Valentine, NE | $9.39 | $14 |
| Norfolk, NE | $9.39 | $15 |
Source: indeed.com (as of January 26, 2021) and salary.com (as of January 29, 2021)
According to indeed.com, Omaha beats all other cities by a little less than a dollar per hour, while the second and third-placed Grand Island and Bellevue are quite close. Salary.com’s data suggests all the cities in the state paid between $14 to $17 an hour.
Highest Paying Metropolitan Areas for Nebraska Medical Assistants
How much do certified medical assistants make in Nebraska’s metropolitan areas at different percentiles? The table below has the answer.
| Metropolitan Area | Mean Annual Wage | 10th Percentile Wage | 50th Percentile (Median) Wage | 90th Percentile Wage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Omaha-Council Bluffs, NE-IA | $37,370 | $28,170 | $36,160 | $50,110 |
| Lincoln, NE | $36,540 | $26,890 | $36,450 | $48,530 |
| Sioux City, IA-NE-SD | $35,480 | $25,490 | $33,110 | $47,530 |
| Grand Island, NE | $31,830 | $23,230 | $30,500 | $42,540 |
Source: BLS (as of March 31, 2020)
Omaha-Council Bluffs isn’t only the highest-paying metropolitan area in Nebraska, but it also has the maximum number of medical assistants employed. Lincoln, Sioux City, and Grand Island are the other metropolitan areas that pay between $31,000 to $36,500 a year to their medical assistants.
Top Cities/Areas with Highest Employment
This table represents all the metropolitan areas of Nebraska and the number of medical assistants working there, according to BLS.
| Metropolitan Area | Number of Employed Medical Assistants |
|---|---|
| Omaha-Council Bluffs, NE-IA | 1,370 |
| Lincoln, NE | 520 |
| Sioux City, IA-NE-SD | 190 |
| Grand Island, NE | 110 |
Source: BLS (as of March 31, 2020)
The salaries of medical assistants in Nebraska are in sync with the number of these professionals employed. The highest paying area has the most number of MAs, while the least paying area has the least number of professionals. This data gives an idea about the population concentration in big cities and how it will be advantageous to work there as a medical assistant if you live in Nebraska.
Top 10 Paying Employers for Medical Assistants in Nebraska
A certified medical assistant’s salary in Nebraska with the top employers is given in the table below, as per indeed.com.
| Employer | Per Hour Salary |
|---|---|
| Kaiser Permanente | $23.56 |
| UCLA Health | $23.41 |
| NYU Langone Health | $20.74 |
| Virginia Mason | $20 |
| Scripps Health | $19.76 |
| Atrius Health | $19.54 |
| Massachusetts General Hospital | $18.15 |
| Providence | $18.06 |
| Action Urgent Care | $17.42 |
| Maxim Healthcare Group | $17.50 |
Source: indeed.com (as of January 26, 2021)
The highest salary for medical assistants in Nebraska is paid by Kaiser Permanente, like many other states, closely followed by UCLA Health, which took second place. All 3 employers below Kaiser pay an hourly wage between $20-$23, which means there’s tough competition. Similarly, there is a competition between the bottom three.
Benefits for Nebraska Medical Assistants other than Salaries
How much do medical assistants in Nebraska make in real terms? Their monetary compensation of $33,424 a year is about 66.6% of their total remuneration. The remaining $16,746 yearly is earned through the benefits mentioned below, making their total yearly compensation approximately $50,170.
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Healthcare
The healthcare plans for medical assistants in Nebraska cost about $6,371 a year, which make up about 12.7% of their yearly compensation.
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Time Off
Leaves of medical assistants in Nebraska make up about 8.5% of their total compensation, with a monetary value of $4,242 annually.
-
Social Security
Medical assistants see their social security payments taken care of by their employers if they work in Nebraska. The amount comes to $2,557 a year, or 5.1% of the yearly remuneration.
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401K/403B
3.3% of the total compensation of Nebraska medical assistants is received through payments towards 401K or 403B by their employers. The amount is about $1,638 annually.
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Pension
A medical assistant’s pension fund makes up for 2.8% of their yearly remuneration. Employers contribute about $1,401 a year to it for helping their employees after they retire.
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Disability
About 1.1% of a medical assistant’s compensation is a disability fund, which receives about $535 a year from the employers to be used in case of permanent disability.
(Source: salary.com as of January 29, 2021)
Salaries of Similar Professions in Nebraska
To know how much medical assistants make in Nebraska, compared to their compatriots in the healthcare industry, look at the following tables. The first table takes data from indeed.com, while the second one takes similar information from salary.com.
| Related Professions | Average Hourly Salary |
|---|---|
| Dermatology Assistant | $23.88 |
| Certified Medical Assistant | $16.64 |
| Clinical Assistant | $15.42 |
| Medical Receptionist | $14.35 |
| Medical Office Assistant | $13.78 |
| Medical Scribe | $11.62 |
Source: indeed.com (as of January 26, 2021)
The professions in the list above earn an hourly wage below medical assistants, except the first-placed Dermatology Assistants, who earn an enormous $23.88 an hour, owing to their specialty. Other than that, the hourly wage ranges between $11 to $16 an hour approximately. Another thing to note here is that Certified MAs in Nebraska make a bit higher than non-certified medical assistants.
| Related Professions | Average Annual Salary |
|---|---|
| Physician Assistant- Specialty | $108,536 |
| Physician Assistant- Medical | $99,935 |
| Medical Billing Specialist | $38,616 |
| Medical Secretary | $38,269 |
| Medical Librarian Assistant | $34,885 |
| Medical Scribe | $32,081 |
Source: salary.com (as of January 29, 2021)
Medical assistants earn less than all the above similar professions, according to salary.com. Notably, Physician Assistants have to go through a master’s degree, which justifies their high salary. The remaining professions get paid between $32,000 and $38,000 yearly, more or less. You can make these your options if you feel you’ll do good in them.
Projected Employment and Hiring Trends for NE Medical Assistants (2018-2028)
Job Outlook
Employers in Nebraska prefer certified professionals for jobs, promotions, giving essential responsibilities, etc. Different bodies give you a different title, but a medical assistant’s scope of practice in NE, or anywhere else, doesn’t change much because of it.
The projections table below clearly states the exceptional growth rate for medical assistant jobs in Nebraska, which is 22.5% between 2018 and 2028. It means 690 more medical assistants by 2028 and 450 job openings every year, which is a significant number if you’re looking at it from an aspirant’s perspective.
| Estimated Employment and Projected Growth (Medical Assistants) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Projected Area | Base Year Employment
(2018) |
Projected Employment
(2028) |
Numeric Change | Percentage Change | Annual Job Openings |
|
Nebraska |
3,070 | 3,760 | 690 | +22.5% | 450 |
Source: U.S. Department of Labor-Sponsored resource, Projections Central (2018-2028 report)
Hiring Trends
- Healthcare and social assistance have notably added the second-highest jobs in Nebraska from 1999 to December 2019, which is 13.4% of all the jobs added since then. This report was published by the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City.
- Medical assistance was the 14th fastest-growing job in Nebraska as per CareerOneStop’s 2016-2026 projections. It was projected to add 840 new jobs in this period at a 27% growth rate, with the average annual job openings being 450.
- Another list of fastest-growing jobs in Nebraska from Zippia placed medical assisting at the 26th spot with an average annual income of $31,530. The growth rate projected in May 2019 was 117.7%, which would see 4,050 medical assistants working in the state by the end of 2024.
- Medical assistance was placed 86th by USA Wage in the list of most popular Nebraska jobs for 2020. According to this report, 2,810 medical assistants earned $33,760 a year, contributing to 0.29% of the state’s total workforce, as of April 2020.
- The list of best healthcare facilities by Zippia will help you find medical assistant jobs in Nebraska that will help your career in many ways. It has carefully selected the institutions based on company financial health, employee diversity, and employees’ salaries. Here are the top 5: Physicians Mutual, Nebraska Methodist Health System, National Research, Health Data Management, and Providence Medical Center.
Written by : Casey Gardner
Casey Gardner is both a healthcare support professional and an accomplished content creator. She has been working as a certified health care professional with marketable skills as a physician assistant, and a qualified medical assistant for last two decades. She has dedicated her nursing career to produce over hundreds of content pieces since 2001, and her work has been published both online as well as offline.
