Medical Assistant Jobs in New York, NY
Medical assistants in the New York metro earn a median of $23.26 an hour, and NYU Langone posts full-time roles at $58,000 to $61,700 a year. Hospital-system physician practices post many of the openings. Here are the current openings, followed by who is hiring and how to get trained.
Current medical assistant Openings in New York, NY
Listings marked External are sponsored openings provided by the Jobs2Careers network.
Medical Assistant Work in New York
New York City's medical assistant jobs follow the hospital systems out into their neighborhood practices. Mount Sinai staffs MAs in primary care and multispecialty offices across Manhattan and in Jackson Heights, NYU Langone hires them for faculty practices in Manhattan, Brooklyn, Rego Park and Staten Island, and NewYork-Presbyterian runs MA teams in its Center for Community Health in Brooklyn and the Queens Medical Group in Flushing. Weill Cornell Medicine's practices on the Upper East Side and in Lower Manhattan also post MA roles.
The job here is narrower than in many states. New York does not license or recognize medical assistants, and the State Education Department says they may not give injections or vaccines, administer any medication, triage patients or start IVs. Work that an MA does in many other states belongs to LPNs and RNs in New York, so city MAs focus on rooming patients, vital signs, EKGs, specimen collection and keeping a busy practice on schedule. Languages pay off too: NYU Langone and VNS Health post roles asking for Russian or Chinese speakers.
Top New York Employers Hiring Medical Assistants
These New York employers have posted medical assistant openings on their own careers sites:
- Mount Sinai Health System - hires Medical Assistant I and II roles for primary care, multispecialty and occupational health practices.
- NYU Langone Health - posts full-time and per diem MA roles in Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens and Staten Island with published salaries.
- NewYork-Presbyterian - hires MAs for community health and specialty practices in Brooklyn, Queens and Manhattan, plus an ambulatory float pool.
- VNS Health - hires certified medical assistants for its Medical Care at Home program in Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens.
- Weill Cornell Medicine - posts medical assistant and procedure assistant roles for its Upper East Side and Lower Manhattan practices.
Medical Assistant Salaries in New York
- Entry level: about $18 to $22 an hour for new MAs.
- Experienced: roughly $23 to $27 an hour, about $48,000 to $56,000 a year full time.
- Senior: $28 to $29 or more an hour, and NYU Langone posts full-time MA salaries of $58,000 to $61,700.
These are estimates based on federal May 2025 wage data for the New York-Newark-Jersey City metro, where the medical assistant median is $23.26 an hour, and on salaries posted under the city's pay transparency law. The employer, certification, specialty experience such as EKG or phlebotomy, and a second language all move pay, and the large hospital systems post the highest salaries.
How to Become a Medical Assistant in New York
New York has no medical assistant license, so employers set the bar. Hospital systems commonly want a high school diploma plus either completion of an accredited medical assistant program or a national certification such as the CMA, RMA, CCMA or NCMA; NYU Langone lists exactly that requirement on its postings. In the city, LaGuardia Community College's continuing education division in Long Island City offers a Certified Clinical Medical Assistant sequence covering medical terminology, EKG, phlebotomy, clinical procedures and CPR that prepares students for the National Healthcareer Association CCMA exam.
What the Job Involves
Medical assistants check patients in, take vital signs, height and weight, update medication and allergy lists for the provider to review, run EKGs, collect and label specimens, prepare exam rooms and set up for procedures, and handle scheduling, referrals and follow-up calls. In New York the provider or nurse handles injections, medications and triage, so the MA keeps the clinic flow moving around them.
Skills Employers Look For
- National MA certification or an accredited program certificate
- Accurate vital signs and EKG technique
- Phlebotomy and specimen handling
- Electronic health record and scheduling systems
- A second language such as Spanish, Russian, Mandarin or Cantonese
- Calm, fast patient flow in a high-volume practice
Career Path and Advancement
New York MAs usually move up inside the big systems: Medical Assistant I to Medical Assistant II, then senior patient care coordinator, practice lead or office manager. Others use the job as a stepping stone to a licensed role, taking a practical nursing certificate at BMCC or LaGuardia or an associate degree in nursing at a CUNY campus, which opens up the clinical tasks New York reserves for nurses.
Related Careers in New York
If medical assisting interests you, these related New York roles are close matches:
- Licensed Practical Nurse Jobs
- Certified Nursing Assistant Jobs
- Registered Nurse Jobs
- Healthcare Jobs
Frequently Asked Questions
Do you need a license to be a medical assistant in New York?
No. New York does not license or recognize the medical assistant title. Employers decide what training they require, and large systems such as NYU Langone ask for an accredited program certificate or a national certification such as the CMA or CCMA.
Can medical assistants give injections in New York?
No. The State Education Department says medical assistants may not give vaccines or injections, administer medications, triage patients or insert IVs, even with national certification. They may take vital signs, perform EKGs, collect specimens and draw blood in appropriate settings under supervision.
How much do medical assistants make in New York City?
Federal May 2025 data puts the metro median at $23.26 an hour, with most MAs between about $22 and $27. Hospital systems pay at the top: NYU Langone posts full-time MA salaries between about $58,000 and $61,700 a year.
Is certification worth it for New York medical assistants?
Yes, for hospital jobs. Certification does not expand what you can legally do in New York, but NYU Langone requires either an accredited program or national certification, and Mount Sinai and NewYork-Presbyterian post roles titled Certified Medical Assistant, so certified MAs qualify for more openings.
Which languages help medical assistants get hired in New York?
New York practices serve patients in dozens of languages, and postings reflect it: NYU Langone's Brooklyn practice has asked for Russian speakers and VNS Health for Chinese speakers. Bilingual MAs can also move into coordinator titles such as Weill Cornell's bilingual senior patient care coordinator.
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