Medical Support Assistance
Federal headcount, average salary, length of service, and pay comparison for the Medical Support Assistance occupation series (code 0679), drawn directly from the OPM FedScope dataset (June 2026).
The verdict
With 39,856 employees (2.0% of the federal civilian workforce), Medical Support Assistance ranks as a major federal occupation within the Medical, Hospital, Dental, and Public Health Group family, and headcount declined 0.1% from the prior period. Its average salary of $58,279 pays below the $117,339 federal average.
- Employees
- 39,856
- Share of workforce
- 2.0%
- Avg salary
- $58,279
- Avg tenure
- 8.2 yrs
FedScope read on Medical Support Assistance (dense series)
Federal agencies employ 39,856 people in the Medical Support Assistance occupation (OPM code 0679), accounting for 2.0% of the total federal civilian workforce of 1,953,300 for the June 2026 reporting window. Headcount in this occupation moved down by -0.1% versus the prior period, a useful gauge for job seekers on USAJOBS trying to assess whether this role is expanding government-wide or contracting under hiring freezes and attrition.
The average salary for Medical Support Assistance is $58,279 per year. Salaries moved up by 0.1% from the prior period, a small shift, within the range of normal year-to-year rounding rather than a broad pay-table change. Average length of service in this role is 8.2 years, a mid-length average tenure, reflecting a mix of career employees and those who transfer or exit mid-career.
Medical Support Assistance sits inside the Medical, Hospital, Dental, and Public Health Group family (code 06), which contains 45 related occupations across the federal government. Candidates browsing USAJOBS for Medical Support Assistance postings should also review these sibling occupations in the Medical, Hospital, Dental, and Public Health Group family.
Within the Medical, Hospital, Dental, and Public Health Group family, Medical Support Assistance is one of the top 45 occupations by headcount (#2), accounting for 11.8% of the family's combined 339,162 employees. Its average salary ranks in the bottom half (7th percentile) of pay among Medical, Hospital, Dental, and Public Health Group occupations.
Salary context · lean-pay series
How Medical Support Assistance pay compares to the federal average of $117,339
Occupation Average
$58,279
Federal Average
$117,339
vs. Federal Avg
-50.3%
Where Medical Support Assistance ranks on lean federal pay
Its average salary of $58,279 is higher than 12% of federal occupation series (66 of 541). The highlighted bar marks where Medical Support Assistance sits in the federal pay distribution.
Average-salary distribution across all 541 federal occupation series; Medical Support Assistance ranks higher than 12%.
Related Occupations in Medical, Hospital, Dental, and Public Health Group
10 other occupations in the same family
| Occupation | Employees | Avg Salary | Avg LOS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nurse | 106,218 | $132,267 | 10.2 yrs |
| Medical Officer | 34,687 | $301,569 | 11.6 yrs |
| General Health Science | 17,434 | $133,765 | 11.9 yrs |
| Practical Nurse | 16,755 | $75,898 | 10.4 yrs |
| Pharmacist | 14,529 | $167,390 | 11.1 yrs |
| Nursing Assistant | 14,498 | $55,851 | 7.8 yrs |
| Health Aid and Technician | 12,490 | $61,276 | 10.8 yrs |
| Health System Specialist | 7,966 | $110,534 | 15.9 yrs |
| Pharmacy Technician | 7,658 | $70,794 | 9.5 yrs |
| Medical Technologist | 6,123 | $117,456 | 12.2 yrs |
Nationwide peers near this dense headcount
Two peer sets for Medical Support Assistance outside the Medical, Hospital, Dental, and Public Health Group family, on headcount and average salary axes that vary across all OPM occupation series.
Similar dense headcount
Nearest employee counts in other occupation families (39,856 here).
Similar lean average salary
Nearest average salaries in other occupation families ($58,279 here).
Key takeaways
- Medical Support Assistance pays below the federal average by 50.3% ($58,279 vs $117,339 federal-wide), at the 12th percentile for pay among 541 tracked occupation series.
- A major federal occupation by headcount: 39,856 employees, 2.0% of the federal civilian workforce, and headcount declined 0.1% from the prior period.
- According to OPM FedScope June 2026, Medical Support Assistance ranks #8 of 663 federal occupation series by headcount (the same employee_count ordering as our occupations directory).
- Within the Medical, Hospital, Dental, and Public Health Group family, Medical Support Assistance is one of the top 45 occupations by headcount (#2), accounting for 11.8% of the family's combined 339,162 employees.
OPM FedScope and Federal Workforce Data figures are federal civilian headcounts, average salaries, and length-of-service statistics - not job-quality scores, hiring advice, or a live vacancy listing. A larger or higher-paid agency is not a better employer.