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In the state of California, medical assistants are unlicensed allied health professionals who assist physicians, physicians’ assistants and nurses with routine, noninvasive technical support services.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), more medical assistants were working in California than in any other state in 2023. In fact, the total number of medical assistants in California (110,280) surpassed the next largest state (Texas) by over 40,000.
As unlicensed professionals, it’s possible to pursue a career as a medical assistant through on-the-job training alone. However, many individual employers may require medical assistants to be certified. If you’re thinking about pursuing a medical assisting career in California, it’s important to understand the state’s laws pertaining to the profession and how to set yourself up for a successful career.
What are medical assistants and what do they do?
Medical assistants help physicians and other health care professionals—including surgeons, podiatrists, physician assistants, nurse practitioners or nurse midwives—with daily administrative and noninvasive technical support tasks. Administrative tasks may include:
With sufficient on-the-job training or formal medical assistant education as deemed necessary by the supervising physician, a medical assistant can also perform the following technical support services on patients:
For more information about a medical assistant’s scope of practice in California, refer to the California Code of Regulations.
California medical assistant salaries
The median annual salary for medical assistants in California is $46,690 according to the 2023 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics from the BLS. This is about $6,000 more per year compared to the national median. Salary ranges in California can vary a lot and the area of the state with the highest wages for medical assistants is the San Franciso Bay Area and its surrounding cities. The BLS states that the median annual wage for medical assistants in the San Franciso-Oakland-Hayword metropolitan area is $62,160. You can find median salaries for other California cities below.
Medical Assistants
10%$36,600
25%$39,240
50%$46,690Median
75%$59,270
90%$72,940
Median Hourly Wage$22
Job growth13.9%
Total Employment110,280
| Metro area | Median Salary | Bottom 10% | Top 10% |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vallejo-Fairfield, CA | $74,750 | $42,600 | $82,500 |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA | $60,500 | $44,160 | $78,250 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA | $59,770 | $45,440 | $82,410 |
| Sacramento--Roseville--Arden-Arcade, CA | $59,520 | $38,420 | $79,200 |
| Santa Rosa, CA | $59,190 | $40,190 | $76,120 |
| Napa, CA | $50,960 | $40,970 | $76,120 |
| Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA | $47,610 | $38,060 | $67,130 |
| Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA | $47,510 | $37,200 | $62,800 |
| San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles-Arroyo Grande, CA | $47,180 | $36,620 | $64,070 |
| Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA | $47,010 | $37,960 | $72,360 |
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) 2023 median salary; projected job growth through 2032. Actual salaries may vary depending on location, level of education, years of experience, work environment, and other factors. Salaries may differ even more for those who are self-employed or work part time.
Factors affecting salary
Factors such as your specific location and its cost of living, your education, years of experience and even your type of employer can all impact an individual’s salary.
Of the industries that the BLS lists as having the highest employment levels of medical assistants nationwide, for example, outpatient care centers have the highest annual mean wage ($46,590) followed by general medical and surgical hospitals and then offices of physicians.
Simply putting in your time and accruing experience is perhaps the best way to increase your earning potential as a medical assistant in the long term, but getting additional credentials like medical assistant certifications can also help. Better-paying jobs may be more likely to hire medical assistants that are certified in some way.
Educational requirements for CA
Medical assistants in California are not licensed, which means there are no minimum education requirements to land a job and start working as a medical assistant in California. They can be trained on the job at the discretion of their supervising physician. Because of this, you could technically become a medical assistant in California in no time at all with only a high school diploma or GED.
That said, individual employers or physicians may require their medical assistants to be certified as some malpractice insurance carriers require this. The Medical Board of California recognizes five certifying agencies for medical assistants, each with its eligibility requirements. In general, most medical assistant certifications offered by these approved agencies require that you have completed a medical assisting education program, which are typically certificate programs or associate degrees.
…individual employers or physicians may require their medical assistants to be certified as some malpractice insurance carriers require this.
Whether or not it’s absolutely essential, completing a medical assisting education program could make it much easier to break into the workforce, move up in your career and just generally be better prepared for the job. Students in medical assisting programs can expect to take classes in:
Most medical assisting programs also include a clinical practicum which allows the student to practice working as a medical assistant in a real healthcare setting before they even graduate.
How long does it take to become a medical assistant in California?
The time it takes to become a medical assistant in California can vary depending on the educational path you choose:
Certificate Programs
- Fastest: These programs can be completed in as little as 9 months to a year (full-time) or 12-18 months (part-time). They provide the minimum required skills and knowledge for entry-level positions.
- Focus: Primarily on clinical skills needed for patient care, including taking vitals, administering medications, performing basic procedures, and assisting with examinations.
Associate’s Degree Programs
- Standard: These programs typically take 2 years to complete and offer a more comprehensive education, including general education courses alongside medical assisting coursework.
- Benefits: May provide deeper knowledge and potentially open doors to more advanced positions or opportunities for further education.
Additional Factors
- Externship: Most programs require some form of supervised clinical experience (externship) before graduation, typically ranging from 160 to 240 hours.
- CPR Certification: Obtaining a valid CPR certification is mandatory for licensure in California.
- Licensing Exam: After completing your program and meeting all requirements, you must pass the National Center for Competency Testing (NCCT) Certified Medical Assistant (CMA) exam to get licensed.
Therefore, the overall timeframe can range from around 9 months to 2 years, depending on your chosen program, pace of study, and additional requirements.
California certification and licensing
California does not issue licenses for medical assistants, nor do they require a license or certification to practice.
However, medical assistants in California should consider getting certified to increase their job prospects. Many employers do prefer or outright require their medical assistants to be certified, and it demonstrates a level of credibility to employers that could help you secure better jobs (and possibly a higher salary).
California recognizes medical assistant certifications from five organizations:
- Certified Medical Assistant (CMA):
- Awarded by the American Association of Medical Assistants
- Medical Assistant Certification (MAC):
- Also awards the Clinical Medical Assistant Certification (CMAC) from the American Medical Certification Association
- Registered Medical Assistant (RMA):
- Issued by American Medical Technologists
- California Certified Medical Assistant (CCMA):
- From the California Certifying Board of Medical Assistants
- National Certified Medical Assistant (NCMA):
- Awarded by the Multiskilled Medical Certification Institute, Inc.
Requirements for each certification vary, but most of them require that you graduate from a medical assisting program and/or have enough equivalent work experience.
Finding employment in California
Unsurprisingly, medical assistants in California are mostly concentrated in its large metropolitan areas, with the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim metro area employing the second most medical assistants in the country (36,770) behind only New York City according to the BLS. The San Franciso-Oakland-Hayward metro area also has a spot on the top ten largest employers of medical assistants with 14,500.
According to Definitive Healthcare, the largest health systems in California (also called integrated delivery networks or IDNs) include Kaiser Permanente, CommonSpirit Health, University of California Health and Providence Health. Medical assistants seeking employment may be able to find positions offered by these expansive health systems across the state. According to the BLS, the vast majority of medical assistants work at physicians’ offices followed by hospitals.
Advancing your career in CA
In addition to earning relevant certifications, some medical assistants may wish to advance their healthcare career by putting their experience towards other, higher-level roles.
Since billing and coding are often part of a medical assistant’s job description, a medical assistant may be able to move into a full-time medical billing and coding role in CA, especially if they find that they enjoy administrative tasks over clinical ones. Working as a phlebotomist or EKG technician is another option since most medical assistants have experience drawing blood and/or administering EKG tests as part of their existing job.
If they want to lean into a more advanced clinical role, a medical assistant may choose to become a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) or Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN/LVN). Transitioning to these jobs would likely require more schooling, but it might be possible to count some of the credits earned in a medical assisting education towards any additional degrees.
Finally, some medical assistants discover that they’d like to become registered nurses (RNs). This would require getting either an associate degree in nursing (ADN) or a Bachelor of Science in nursing (BSN). Like CNA or LPN programs, you may be able to earn a nursing degree in slightly less time if you’ve completed a medical assisting education as some of the classes may be the same. Working as an RN could also increase your earning potential substantially. In fact, the median annual salary for registered nurses in California is the highest in the country at $118,410.
Legal and ethical considerations for CA medical assistants
Just like all health care professionals, medical assistants are held to high legal and ethical standards. As someone who interacts directly with patients and their medical information, medical assistants must have the utmost integrity with regard to confidentiality.
Regarding what medical assistants are legally allowed to do, this can get a bit tricky as certain tasks may fall into a gray area coupled with the fact that different states have different practice laws for medical assistants. The Medical Board of California tries to be as clear as possible about a medical assistant’s scope of practice to eliminate the risk of a medical assistant performing a procedure that is outside of their purview. For example, they state that medical assistants may not perform invasive procedures including:
It is imperative that medical assistants familiarize themselves with the scope of practice allowed within their state.
Additional resources
For all information pertaining to laws and regulations for medical assistants, refer to the Medical Board of California’s page on medical assistants.
If you are interested in accessing a membership-based networking group for medical assistants in California with a collection of industry-specific resources, check out the California Society of Medical Assistants (CSMA) which is an affiliate of the American Association of Medical Assistants (AAMA).
Wrapping it up
Compared to some other allied health professions, becoming a medical assistant in the state of California is relatively easy since there are no education or licensing requirements.
Although it is not mandated by law, anyone who endeavors to be a medical assistant should consider graduating from a medical assisting education program such as a certificate program or associate degree. Not only can an education program equip you with the knowledge and hands-on experience needed to excel in this role, but many individual employers require their medical assistants to have an appropriate education. For that same reason, medical assistants in California should also consider getting certified by one of the state’s five approved certifying organizations for medical assistants.
Learn how to become a medical assistant in different states: Alabama | California | Florida | Georgia | New Jersey | New York | Ohio | Pennsylvania | South Carolina | Texas
Published: December 12, 2023
Written and reported by:
Kendall Upton
Staff writer