Physician assistants (PAs) are among the fastest-growing professionals in healthcare. Today, there are approximately 190,000 PAs in practice, delivering over 590 million patient interactions annually, according to the National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants. With the clinical expertise to work across specialties and care environments, PAs have become essential to meeting growing patient demand and mitigating persistent workforce shortages.
How Physician Assistants Are Expanding Access to Care
As healthcare demands outpace workforce capacity, physician assistants (PAs) are redefining how and where care is delivered. Their broad clinical training and flexibility across care settings enable them to step into critical roles that strengthen patient access, support continuity, and improve system-wide efficiency.
- Deliver versatile, high-value care. PAs work across hospitals, outpatient clinics, urgent care centers, and surgical teams, making them vital to both primary and specialty care.
- Reduce barriers to access. In rural and underserved areas, nearly half of non-metro PAs practice in primary care, often serving as the most consistent access point for patients.
- Enhance patient-centered care. By combining medical expertise with strong communication and advocacy, PAs improve continuity, collaboration, and trust in care delivery.
Looking ahead, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects a 20% increase in PA job growth between 2024 and 2034, making the specialty one of the fastest-growing professions in healthcare.
The Added Value of Locum Tenens Physician Assistants
While physician assistants already play a vital role in care delivery, locum tenens opportunities enable them to expand their reach even further—offering flexible solutions that strengthen clinical teams and support uninterrupted patient care.
The Benefits of Locum Tenens Physician Assistants for Healthcare Facilities:
- Continuity of Care: Locum tenens physician assistants help maintain consistent patient access during provider leave, seasonal surges, and ongoing staffing shortages.
- Service Line Development: By leveraging locum tenens physician assistants, healthcare organizations can pilot new programs and care team models while recruiting permanent providers.
- Community Access: Locum tenens physician assistants expand access to care in rural areas, helping healthcare facilities reach patients who might otherwise go without care.
- Clinician Well-being: By supporting overextended teams, locum tenens physician assistants help reduce workloads, support time off, and prevent burnout among permanent staff.
The Benefits of Locum Tenens for Physician Assistants:
- Career Versatility: With locum tenens jobs, PAs have the opportunity to work in diverse clinical settings with varied patient populations, allowing them to expand and broaden their skill sets.
- Work-life Balance: Due to the temporary nature and high demand of locum tenens jobs, locum tenens PAs have the unique ability to choose locum jobs that align with their personal priorities and schedules.
- Increased Compensation: Locum tenens physician assistant jobs typically pay more than permanent roles because facilities must cover urgent staffing gaps, hard-to-fill locations, and avoid long-term benefit costs. This premium reflects the flexibility and immediate value PAs provide.
- Travel Opportunities: Locum tenens physician assistant jobs are available nationwide, offering locum tenens PAs the opportunity to travel and work in regions they've always wanted to explore.
At Medicus, we connect healthcare organizations with highly skilled locum tenens physician assistants who can make an immediate difference at their hospital or medical facility. Our partners rely on us for dependable locum tenens staffing solutions that ensure patient access, while physician assistants benefit from rewarding roles that offer flexibility, professional growth, and competitive compensation.
Whether you're a PA exploring new opportunities or a healthcare leader seeking trusted coverage, Medicus helps you create solutions that keep care strong today — and sustainable for the future.
Frequently Asked Questions about Physician Assistants:
How Many Physician Assistants Are There in the United States?
Within the U.S., there are roughly 190,000 PAs according to the NCCPA.
How Many Physician Assistants Work Locum Tenens Jobs in the United States?
As of October 2025, a little over 4% of physician assistants work locum tenens jobs, which equates to about 1 in 23 PAs.
What is the Average Age of Physician Assistants in the United States?
Over half of PAs (59%) are under the age of 40 years old.
What is the Training & Certification Process for Physician Assistants?
To obtain a license, PAs must graduate from one of the 300 accredited PA programs in the United States. During training, PA students will complete 2,000 hours of clinical rotations as part of their three-year master's degree program. From there, PAs are required to complete 100 hours of continuing medical education every two years to maintain their certification.
What Specialties Can Physician Assistants Work In?
Physician assistants can practice in nearly every area of medicine, from primary care to highly specialized fields, including cardiology, surgery, emergency medicine, and psychiatry.
According to the 2025 AAPA Salary Survey, PAs practice medicine in all specialties, including surgical, primary care, internal medicine subspecialties, and more.
Are Physician Assistants in More Urban or Rural Areas?
Urban. Nearly 90% of physician assistants practice in metropolitan areas. However, those who practice in rural areas often play a vital role in primary care access, in many cases serving as patients' primary care providers.
Which Clinical Settings do Physician Assistants Work In?
Physician assistants practice in nearly every type of clinical environment, though most PAs provide care in outpatient settings.
The 2025 AAPA Salary Survey shows that a majority of PAs practice in an outpatient office or clinic.
Can Physician Assistants Practice Independently?
The short answer is that it depends on the state. While a growing number of states are modernizing their regulations, most do not explicitly use the term "independent practice." Instead, they outline levels of oversight or collaboration, such as whether a physician must review charts, be available for consultation, or provide formal delegation.
In recent years, many states have shifted toward models that allow healthcare organizations and care teams to define these relationships based on patient needs and provider expertise. To clarify these variations, the American Academy of Physician Associates (AAPA) developed a four-tier framework that categorizes each state's regulatory environment for PAs as optimal, advanced, moderate, or reduced.
What States have Optimal PA Practice?
Lawmakers across the country are steadily updating PA practice laws to reflect the realities of modern care delivery. While most states stop short of formally defining "independent practice," the overall trend is toward models that prioritize collaboration and team-based decision-making over prescriptive supervision. As of July 2025, the states with optimal PA practice include Iowa, Montana, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Utah, and Wyoming, according to the AAPA.
What is the PA Licensure Compact & Why is it Important?
The PA Licensure Compact is an interstate agreement that will allow PAs licensed in one compact state to obtain practice privileges in other compact states more easily. Although it is not yet operational, once implemented, it will streamline the licensing process for PAs, reduce delays, and make it easier for PAs to provide care across state lines, including through telemedicine.
Interested in working as a locum tenens physician assistant with Medicus? View our open locum tenens physician assistant jobs here, or complete the short form below to connect with a Medicus recruiter.
