Public Health Officers
Design and implement programs that protect and improve population health.
At a glance
Employment for Public Health Officers is projected to grow 16% over the decade to 2035, 12 points above the typical occupation we cover. Displacement risk is moderate and works-with-AI scores 8/100, leaning toward displacement; modeled exposure is at the 33rd percentile. BLS projects about 3,000 openings a year. Entry route: Master's (MPH). Pay for Public Health Officers centers on a $68,020 median, in line with the typical occupation we cover (30% below the Healthcare Practitioners median). Where the projection for Dietitians & Nutritionists is +7.7%, the figure here is +16%.
Similar pay in Healthcare Practitioners
Key skills
- Epidemiology
- Policy
- Program management
- Communication
- Data analysis
Pay and jobs by state
BLS OEWS May 2025, 50 states and DC. Sorted by jobs; per 1,000 is jobs per thousand workers in the state; vs national compares that rate with the country's. A tilde marks a figure estimated from the parent occupation group where BLS publishes none.
| State | Jobs | Per 1,000 | vs national | Median pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| California | 2,920 | 0.2 | 0.7× | $91k |
| Texas | 2,880 | 0.2 | 0.8× | $77k |
| Ohio | 2,500 | 0.5 | 1.8× | $71k |
| North Carolina | 2,370 | 0.5 | 2.0× | $63k |
| Florida | 2,360 | 0.2 | 1.0× | $77k |
| New York | 2,000 | 0.2 | 0.8× | $75k |
| New Jersey | 1,680 | 0.4 | 1.6× | $62k |
| Georgia | 1,630 | 0.3 | 1.4× | $70k |
| Kentucky | 1,320 | 0.7 | 2.7× | $49k |
| Maryland | 1,170 | 0.4 | 1.7× | $70k |
All 50 states and DC
| State | Jobs | Per 1,000 | vs national | Median pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pennsylvania | 1,090 | 0.2 | 0.7× | $60k |
| Indiana | 1,040 | 0.3 | 1.3× | $46k |
| Minnesota | 1,040 | 0.4 | 1.4× | $91k |
| Michigan | 1,020 | 0.2 | 0.9× | $67k |
| Missouri | 930 | 0.3 | 1.3× | $59k |
| Arizona | 900 | 0.3 | 1.1× | $51k |
| Illinois | 900 | 0.1 | 0.6× | $63k |
| Massachusetts | 880 | 0.2 | 1.0× | $81k |
| Virginia | 770 | 0.2 | 0.8× | $59k |
| Washington | 670 | 0.2 | 0.8× | $60k |
| Oregon | 660 | 0.3 | 1.4× | $86k |
| Wisconsin | 650 | 0.2 | 0.9× | $89k |
| Kansas | 610 | 0.4 | 1.7× | $60k |
| Oklahoma | 610 | 0.4 | 1.5× | $45k |
| Tennessee | 580 | 0.2 | 0.7× | $65k |
| Alabama | 564 (estimated) | 0.3 (estimated) | 1.1× (estimated) | $53k (estimated) |
| Idaho | 560 | 0.7 | 2.7× | $56k |
| South Carolina | 470 | 0.2 | 0.8× | $45k |
| Colorado | 370 | 0.1 | 0.5× | $78k |
| Arkansas | 357 (estimated) | 0.3 (estimated) | 1.1× (estimated) | $93k |
| Utah | 340 (estimated) | 0.2 (estimated) | 0.8× (estimated) | $75k |
| Iowa | 270 | 0.2 | 0.7× | $81k |
| Nebraska | 260 | 0.3 | 1.0× | $50k |
| Nevada | 250 | 0.2 | 0.7× | $64k |
| Louisiana | 210 | 0.1 | 0.4× | $66k |
| Maine | 200 | 0.3 | 1.3× | $50k |
| Montana | 190 | 0.4 | 1.5× | $79k |
| Connecticut | 180 | 0.1 | 0.4× | $76k |
| New Hampshire | 170 | 0.2 | 1.0× | $81k |
| Hawaii | 150 | 0.2 | 1.0× | $52k |
| Delaware | 140 (estimated) | 0.3 (estimated) | 1.2× (estimated) | $69k |
| South Dakota | 140 | 0.3 | 1.3× | $61k |
| Mississippi | 120 | 0.1 | 0.4× | $47k |
| New Mexico | 120 | 0.1 | 0.6× | $42k |
| West Virginia | 100 | 0.1 | 0.6× | $61k |
| Washington DC | 80 | 0.1 | 0.5× | $75k |
| Vermont | 80 | 0.3 | 1.1× | $73k |
| Alaska | 70 | 0.2 | 0.9× | $71k |
| North Dakota | 60 | 0.1 | 0.6× | $81k |
| Rhode Island | 50 | 0.1 | 0.4× | $72k |
| Wyoming | 50 | 0.2 | 0.7× | $89k |
Top metro areas
- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ2,340 jobs · $78k median
- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA1,200 jobs · $88k median
- Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC990 jobs · $42k median
- Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD990 jobs · $60k median
- Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA880 jobs · $80k median
- Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX820 jobs · $79k median
- Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD740 jobs · $67k median
- Columbus, OH730 jobs · $84k median
Where this ranks
Explore Public Health Officers interactively →Pay and outlook from BLS (OEWS 2025, Employment Projections 2025-2035). Skills and work activities from O*NET 30.3. AI exposure and future-proof scores are modeled estimates. How these numbers are made.