Demand for these health care jobs is increasing most in each state

Published 3:30 pm Thursday, February 15, 2024

Demand for these health care jobs is increasing most in each state

Scrubs could become an essential part of the wardrobe for millions more Americans as health care jobs grow across the country.

The aging U.S. population is rapidly increasing demand for many jobs in the health sector, which has become the fastest-growing part of the national economy. Although many medical jobs require advanced degrees—physicians, nurses, surgeons, etc.—the role growing fastest across most states is generally accessible to anyone with a high school diploma.

The job? Home health and personal care aides. The U.S. expects to add close to a million jobs in this profession over the next decade. These aides monitor and assist people with disabilities and chronic illnesses, including hospice. They often work in individuals’ homes or in group homes and day services programs. After COVID-19 devastated nursing homes, surveys have found fewer Americans are willing to live in them as they age. As a result, even more families may discover ways to use full-time or part-time in-home aides for end-of-life care.

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An analysis including more than 70 other health care jobs projected all but three states to add home health and personal care aides in the highest numbers. In just three states—Colorado, Florida, and South Dakota—did registered nurse job growth outpace home health.

As a percentage of current jobs, roles seeing the most growth are slightly more varied. Most commonly, nurse practitioner jobs are growing the most among 40 of the 50 states and Washington D.C. In Arizona, for instance, the volume of nurse practitioner jobs is expected to grow 100.8% over the decade—in other words, jobs will double. Massage therapist jobs are increasing fastest in six states, with the most significant change in New York at 75% growth. These statistics provide insight into how jobs are changing relative to their current employment. However, they don’t shine as much light on which careers will offer the most job opportunities to future Americans.

To provide that insight to potential future health care workers across America, Medical Technology Schools identified the health care positions expected to add the most jobs in each state and Washington D.C. from 2020 to 2030, using Bureau of Labor Statistics data compiled by Projections Central. States are listed in alphabetical order, and the top three health care positions by the number of new jobs are provided.


A view of a city situated by the river with tall buildings.

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Alabama

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+4,210 jobs)
#2. Registered nurses (+4,170 jobs)
#3. Medical and health services managers (+2,210 jobs)

Boats on the water in the foreground with tall green trees and snowy mountain peaks.

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Alaska

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+860 jobs)
#2. Registered nurses (+820 jobs)
#3. Nursing assistants (+290 jobs)

Town situated at the foot of red tall mountains in the background.

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Arizona

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+44,820 jobs)
#2. Registered nurses (+22,980 jobs)
#3. Medical assistants (+10,350 jobs)

City skyline by the river with an iron bridge in the foreground.

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Arkansas

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+6,450 jobs)
#2. Registered nurses (+2,350 jobs)
#3. Medical and health services managers (+1,870 jobs)

Beach town on the hill overlooking the ocean.

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California

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+219,800 jobs)
#2. Registered nurses (+35,000 jobs)
#3. Medical assistants (+19,000 jobs)

Tall snowy mountains surrounding a town with lots of snow on the street.

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Colorado

#1. Registered nurses (+15,170 jobs)
#2. Home health and personal care aides (+12,330 jobs)
#3. Nursing assistants (+5,690 jobs)

A city skyline with white bridge over the river.

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Connecticut

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+9,070 jobs)
#2. Medical and health services managers (+2,060 jobs)
#3. Medical assistants (+1,490 jobs)

A city skyline with river in the foreground.

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Delaware

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+3,350 jobs)
#2. Registered nurses (+1,690 jobs)
#3. Nursing assistants (+710 jobs)

Tall buildings on narrow strips of land surrounded by water.

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Florida

#1. Registered nurses (+27,390 jobs)
#2. Home health and personal care aides (+17,130 jobs)
#3. Medical assistants (+17,040 jobs)

Skyscrapers by the body of water surrounded by trees in fall.

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Georgia

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+16,290 jobs)
#2. Registered nurses (+13,260 jobs)
#3. Medical assistants (+8,760 jobs)

Stairs in the foreground with a town situated in a green valley surrounded by water and green mountains.

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Hawaii

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+2,980 jobs)
#2. Registered nurses (+1,030 jobs)
#3. Medical assistants (+930 jobs)

A city in winter with tall snowy mountains in the background.

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Idaho

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+3,240 jobs)
#2. Registered nurses (+3,050 jobs)
#3. Nursing assistants (+1,480 jobs)

Modern steel and glass city skyscrapers by large field of grass in the foreground.

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Illinois

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+19,140 jobs)
#2. Registered nurses (+6,250 jobs)
#3. Medical and health services managers (+3,800 jobs)

City skyline by the river.

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Indiana

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+13,520 jobs)
#2. Registered nurses (+5,210 jobs)
#3. Nurse Practitioners (+3,220 jobs)

City skyline by the river with an iron bridge in the foreground.

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Iowa

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+7,700 jobs)
#2. Registered nurses (+3,960 jobs)
#3. Nursing assistants (+2,850 jobs)

Aerial view of the city with green trees.

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Kansas

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+4,400 jobs)
#2. Registered nurses (+2,270 jobs)
#3. Medical and health services managers (+1,320 jobs)

Green mountain hills covered in trees with few homes in between.

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Kentucky

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+7,900 jobs)
#2. Registered nurses (+3,820 jobs)
#3. Medical and health services managers (+2,480 jobs)

City skyline by the wide river and iron bridge in the foreground.

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Louisiana

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+6,260 jobs)
#2. Nurse Practitioners (+1,210 jobs)
#3. Medical and health services managers (+1,170 jobs)

Town on the water in lush green surroundings.

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Maine

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+1,310 jobs)
#2. Nursing assistants (+610 jobs)
#3. Nurse Practitioners (+550 jobs)

Inner harbor in the foreground and city skyline in the background.

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Maryland

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+14,230 jobs)
#2. Registered nurses (+12,320 jobs)
#3. Nursing assistants (+6,570 jobs)

City skyline with glass, steel, and concrete buildings by the river.

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Massachusetts

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+30,130 jobs)
#2. Registered nurses (+10,700 jobs)
#3. Medical and health services managers (+6,880 jobs)

City skyline at sunset with body of water in foreground.

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Michigan

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+18,070 jobs)
#2. Registered nurses (+8,160 jobs)
#3. Medical assistants (+4,200 jobs)

City skyline by the river with a bridge in the foreground.

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Minnesota

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+25,920 jobs)
#2. Registered nurses (+4,760 jobs)
#3. Medical and health services managers (+2,420 jobs)

City skyline with sunset in background and boat on a river in the foreground.

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Mississippi

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+6,070 jobs)
#2. Registered nurses (+3,950 jobs)
#3. Nursing assistants (+2,510 jobs)

City skyline at sunset.

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Missouri

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+10,200 jobs)
#2. Registered nurses (+4,800 jobs)
#3. Nurse Practitioners (+3,030 jobs)

A city in the valley surrounded by tall mountains.

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Montana

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+2,700 jobs)
#2. Medical and health services managers (+690 jobs)
#3. Registered nurses (+580 jobs)

A city skyline with green space and water in the foreground.

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Nebraska

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+2,710 jobs)
#2. Registered nurses (+2,140 jobs)
#3. Medical and health services managers (+680 jobs)

High mountain tops with few homes at the foot of the mountains.

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Nevada

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+8,030 jobs)
#2. Registered nurses (+5,590 jobs)
#3. Nursing assistants (+2,940 jobs)

Brick buildings by the body of water.

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New Hampshire

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+2,560 jobs)
#2. Registered nurses (+1,230 jobs)
#3. Medical and health services managers (+670 jobs)

Rows of buildings by the body of water.

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New Jersey

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+17,320 jobs)
#2. Registered nurses (+7,190 jobs)
#3. Medical and health services managers (+4,430 jobs)

Modern buildings in vast barren land with tall mountains in the background.

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New Mexico

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+8,390 jobs)
#2. Registered nurses (+2,610 jobs)
#3. Medical assistants (+1,630 jobs)

Row of brick buildings by the canal with a boat.

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New York

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+199,700 jobs)
#2. Registered nurses (+33,420 jobs)
#3. Nursing assistants (+15,360 jobs)

View of the city with lots of trees and foggy mountains in the background.

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North Carolina

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+16,920 jobs)
#2. Registered nurses (+11,770 jobs)
#3. Nursing assistants (+5,980 jobs)

Brick buildings along the snowy street.

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North Dakota

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+1,750 jobs)
#2. Registered nurses (+1,400 jobs)
#3. Nursing assistants (+830 jobs)

City skyline by the water with bridge in the foreground.

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Ohio

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+22,980 jobs)
#2. Registered nurses (+9,380 jobs)
#3. Nurse Practitioners (+4,690 jobs)

City skyline along the river.

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Oklahoma

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+5,750 jobs)
#2. Registered nurses (+4,670 jobs)
#3. Medical and health services managers (+2,430 jobs)

City skyline by the river.

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Oregon

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+7,630 jobs)
#2. Registered nurses (+4,980 jobs)
#3. Medical assistants (+3,310 jobs)

A row of colorful buildings by the water.

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Pennsylvania

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+39,600 jobs)
#2. Registered nurses (+13,100 jobs)
#3. Nursing assistants (+7,330 jobs)

Wooden buildings by the water with boats in the foreground.

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Rhode Island

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+2,040 jobs)
#2. Nursing assistants (+890 jobs)
#3. Registered nurses (+660 jobs)

Buildings and palm trees along the promenade by the body of water.

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South Carolina

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+10,100 jobs)
#2. Registered nurses (+4,990 jobs)
#3. Medical assistants (+2,730 jobs)

A town in the valley surrounded by lush green mountains.

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South Dakota

#1. Registered nurses (+1,610 jobs)
#2. Home health and personal care aides (+740 jobs)
#3. Nursing assistants (+510 jobs)

City skyline along the river.

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Tennessee

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+13,270 jobs)
#2. Registered nurses (+10,870 jobs)
#3. Nurse Practitioners (+4,680 jobs)

City skyline of tall modern buildings.

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Texas

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+97,720 jobs)
#2. Registered nurses (+37,740 jobs)
#3. Medical assistants (+20,900 jobs)

Tall modern buildings with tall mountains in the background.

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Utah

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+5,360 jobs)
#2. Registered nurses (+4,980 jobs)
#3. Medical assistants (+2,820 jobs)

A rural nonpaved road leading to wooden buildings situated among green hills.

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Vermont

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+2,540 jobs)
#2. Registered nurses (+690 jobs)
#3. Medical and health services managers (+440 jobs)

A city skyline at dusk with rail trucks and green grounds in the foreground.

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Virginia

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+16,770 jobs)
#2. Registered nurses (+5,560 jobs)
#3. Nursing assistants (+5,290 jobs)

A town situated by the body of water with tall snowy mountain peaks and green trees in the background.

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Washington

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+17,460 jobs)
#2. Registered nurses (+9,990 jobs)
#3. Massage Therapists (+5,010 jobs)

Aerial view of town with white buildings, green spaces, and body of water.

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Washington D.C.

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+3,060 jobs)
#2. Registered nurses (+570 jobs)
#3. Medical and health services managers (+460 jobs)

Aerial view of a town by the river surrounded by lush green trees with two bridges in the foreground.

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West Virginia

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+4,980 jobs)
#2. Registered nurses (+2,560 jobs)
#3. Medical assistants (+1,080 jobs)

Tall buildings along the river in a city downtown.

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Wisconsin

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+14,510 jobs)
#2. Registered nurses (+2,530 jobs)
#3. Nurse Practitioners (+1,900 jobs)

Town situated at the foot of the mountains.

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Wyoming

#1. Home health and personal care aides (+1,270 jobs)
#2. Registered nurses (+550 jobs)
#3. Medical and health services managers (+300 jobs)

Story editing by Ashleigh Graf. Copy editing by Tim Bruns. Photo selection by Ania Antecka.

This story originally appeared on Medical Technology Schools and was produced and
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