Facts About Nurse Practitioners

Posted over 12 years ago by Lisa Patton

There are over 148,000 nurse practitioners (NPs) practicing in U.S.
An estimated 9500 new NPs completed their academic programs in 2010-2011
93% of NPs have graduate degrees
97% of NPs maintain national certification
18% of NPs practice in rural or frontier settings
88% of NPs are prepared in primary care; 68% of NPs practice in at least one primary care site
87% of NPs see patients covered by Medicare and 84% by Medicaid
43% of NPs hold hospital privileges; 15% have long term care privileges
96.5% of NPs prescribe medications, averaging 20 prescriptions/day
NPs hold prescriptive privilege in all 50 states, with controlled substances in 48
The early-2011 mean full-time NP base salary was $91,310, with average full-time NP total income $98,760
60% of NPs see three to four patients per hour; 7% see over five patients per hour
Malpractice rates remain low; only 2% have been named as primary defendant in a malpractice case
Average NP is female (96%) and 48 years old; she has been in practice for 12.8
years as a family NP (49%)

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