This page compares two distinct NUCC-taxonomy specialties tracked by the CMS National Plan and Provider Enumeration System: Physician Assistant, which currently counts 150,974 enrolled providers across 56 U.S. states and territories, and Surgical Physician Assistant, with 16,179 providers across 54 states. Each clinician on these rosters selected a primary NUCC code at NPI enrollment, so the totals measure how many providers self-identify their primary practice as Physician Assistant or Surgical Physician Assistant rather than the total population ever trained or credentialed in either field, dual-certified clinicians show up under whichever code they registered first. Every figure is drawn from the federal National Provider Identifier Registry (CMS NPPES) - more than 7 million providers, maintained since May 2007, with 2023 Medicare Part D data, and, according to CMS, can be searched, compared, and traced in our methodology.

On national volume, Physician Assistant carries the larger provider roster (150,974 vs 16,179), and Physician Assistant has the wider geographic footprint at 56 states versus 54. The top Physician Assistant concentration sits in New York (14,599 providers), while Surgical Physician Assistant peaks in New York (2,075). The per-capita columns in the table below normalize each state's raw count against 2023 Census population estimates, which matters because absolute provider counts track population scale first and specialty density second, a small state with a strong training pipeline can out-rank a larger state on per-100K availability.

Use this comparison to understand relative availability, not to judge clinical substitutability - Physician Assistant and Surgical Physician Assistant are distinct specialties with different scopes of practice, training requirements, and conditions they treat, even when their NUCC categories overlap. Important: PlainDoctor is a directory of publicly available CMS government data, not medical advice, a provider rating, or a recommendation about which specialty a patient should consult. Always work with a licensed clinician to determine which specialty is appropriate for your condition, verify any specific provider through the NPPES NPI Registry and the relevant state medical board, and consult the NUCC taxonomy documentation for the formal scope-of-practice definitions behind each specialty code.