Do You Know These Stats About EMTs in America?

By: Isadora Teich
Estimated Completion Time
2 min
Do You Know These Stats About EMTs in America?
Image: Zero Creatives / Cultura / Getty IMages

About This Quiz

EMTs have an incredibly important job to do. They provide help and support to people in deadly and dangerous situations every day. They often put themselves at risk to save lives and very often save the lives of people in critical conditions. Many people want to take on professions like these, but not many people can handle such intense and high-stakes work. It takes a lot to dive into risky and high-stakes situations and make the kind of decisions that solve problems and maybe even save lives.  

EMT stands for Emergency Medical Technician and those in this field undergo intense training so they can handle making important medical decisions in high-stakes situations. They are always ready to respond in emergency situations, provide care, and transport sick and injured people to hospitals quickly and efficiently. It takes a lot of guts to be an EMT!

There is a lot to being an EMT, but how much do you know about all of the facts and figures of the job? Put your knowledge of EMT in America stats to the test with this quiz! 

What is the national median yearly pay of EMTs?
$20,500
$28,789
$30,000
$33,380
As of 2017, the median yearly pay for EMTs is $33,380. This is according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

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Which of these states has the most NREMT personnel?
North Dakota
Texas
Texas has one of the largest groups of certified NREMT personnel of any state. It has 32,095 of them.
Florida
Oregon

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What is the hourly median pay of US EMTs?
About $10
About $16
The 2017 median pay of EMTs in America is $16.05 an hour. This data comes from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
About $20
About $23

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As of 2016, about how many EMT jobs were there?
50,000
100,000
250,000
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, as of 2016, there were about 250,000 EMT jobs. The exact number is 248,000.
450,000

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What is the most statistically common injury for EMTs?
Assault
Vehicle accidents
Head injury
Sprains and strains
EMTs have one of the highest injury rates amongst all professions. 67% of those injuries involve strains and sprains, as EMTs often have to maneuver patients for care and transportation.

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Between 2016-2026, how much is the field expected to grow?
2%
8%
15%
The job outlook is excellent for this field. At 15%, its growth is much faster than the average.
21%

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Ambulance services employ what percentage of EMTs?
5%
17%
33%
48%
EMTs and paramedics had about 250,000 jobs in 2016. 48% of them were employed by ambulance services.

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Hospitals employed about what percentage of EMTs and paramedics in 2016?
5%
20%
Hospitals employed 18% of those in this field in 2016. That includes state, local and private hospitals.
30%
50%

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About how many EMTs worked more than 40 hours a week?
1/8
1/5
1/3
Most paid EMTs work full-time. Roughly 1/3 of them worked more than 40 hours a week in 2016.
1/2

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How much did the lowest 10% earners amongst EMTs make?
About $20,000
The lowest 10% of EMTs earned less than $21,880 as of 2017. The median yearly wage is $33,380.
About $25,000
About $30,000
About $40,000

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The highest-earning 10% of EMTs earned more than _______.
$30,000
$40,000
$55,000
The highest 10% of earners amongst EMTs made more than $56,990. This is as of 2017.
$70,000

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Which employer pays EMTs the least?
Local hospitals
Private hospitals
Local government
Ambulance services
Ambulance services pay a median wage of about $30,000. Hospitals and local government both pay a median yearly wage of about $35,000.

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How many more EMTs are there expected to be by 2026?
About 15,000 more
About 30,000 less
About 40,000 more
There is expected to be massive growth in this field due to the growth of cities and the growth of America's aging population. Also, due to the high stress of the job, many people leave it and need to be replaced.
About 5,000 less

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How many hours of training do EMTs have to complete for entry-level positions?
50
80
120
For an entry-level EMT position, people must complete 120 hours of training minimum. This training focuses mostly on trauma, cardiac emergencies and respiratory management.
200

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Most EMTs are men: true or false?
True
75% of EMTs are men. 85% are of nonminority status.
False

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EMT jobs are expected to be most available in which areas?
Small towns
While EMT employment is supposed to grow 33% by 2020, it is thought that most of those jobs will be in rural and small US towns. This is where 54% of employed EMTs are expected to be.
Metropolitan areas
California
The Midwest

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Where do EMTs earn the most in the US?
Washington, DC
EMTs in DC earn the most of any EMTs in the country. Their annual salary is $53,050 a year.
Los Angeles
Houston
Chicago

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In which US state do EMTs make the least?
Wisconsin
Pennsylvania
California
West Virginia
As an EMT, your location plays a big part in how much you will make. While those in some places earn over $50,000 annually, West Virginia EMTs earn an average salary of only about $25,000 a year. This is one of the lowest for EMTs in the country.

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Are most EMT injuries fatal?
Yes
No
According to a Bureau of Labor study conducted between 2003-2007, most EMT injuries are not fatal. Out of 21,749 reported injuries or illnesses, 21,690 were not fatal.

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EMTs have more training than paramedics: true or false?
True
False
In order to become an EMT, you must complete an EMT course, which might be up to about 150 hours in length. Paramedics are trained to handle more advanced medical cases, and their courses can be up to 1,800 hours long.

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After completing an EMT course, how long of a time frame do you have to apply for your certification?
1 week
6 months
2 years
In order to become an EMT, you have to take a course and then take and pass the National Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians (NREMT) EMT exam. After that you can apply for certification within two years of passing the test.
5 years

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Which state has the most NREMT personnel?
California
California has the most NREMT personnel. It has 39,599 of them.
Montana
Florida
Alaska

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How many people in the US were certified as EMTs in 2017?
About 50,000
About 170,000
About 265,000
In 2017, 266,472 people were certified as EMTs in the US. More EMTs were certified than first responders, AEMTs, and paramedics combined.
About 345,000

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Which state has the least NREMT personnel?
Hawaii
New York
Wyoming
Wyoming is one of the least populated states in America, so it makes sense that they have the fewest NREMT personnel. There are only 955 in the state.
Arizona

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In 2018, which state had the lowest first pass rate for EMTs?
Colorado
Rhode Island
Alabama
In 2018, Alabama had the lowest first pass rate for EMTs in America. Only 48% passed the first time.
Nevada

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In 2018, which of these states had the highest EMT first attempt pass rate?
Hawaii
Hawaii had a 94% EMT first attempt pass rate in 2018. This is one of the highest in the whole country.
Pennsylvania
Michigan
Indiana

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What percentage of EMT injuries were serious enough to keep them out of work for longer than a month?
12%
17%
Out of 21,794 reported injuries between 2003-2007, only about 3,700 of them resulted in a month of lost work time or more. That is only 17%.
43%
58%

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How many patients does EMS treat per year in the US?
1 milllion
10 million
15 million
25 million
EMS treats between 25-30 million patients a year in the US. Their annual expenditure is about 5 billion.

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What is the rate of injury for paramedics and EMTs compared to average occupations?
2 times higher
3 times higher
Paramedics and EMTs have a very high injury rate compared to other occupations. The injury rate for those in these occupations is 3 times higher than the average.
The same
2 times less

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What percentage of EMTs have college degrees?
5%
10%
30%
45%
Many EMTs in the US are college educated. 45% have a college degree or higher.

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Of medical professionals, EMTs are how stressed?
The most stressed
In the middle
The least stressed
Despite the severe nature of their work, EMTs are one of the least stressed medical professionals. Only about 6% of nationally certified EMS professionals were classified as stressed, which is lower than the average for most other health care professions.
Highly stressed

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Which of these states has the least NREMT personnel?
Louisiana
Of all of the states about, Louisiana has the least personnel in this field. There are 10,306 of them.
Florida
Ohio
Washington

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What percentage of on-the-job injuries are caused by patients?
About 10%
About 20%
About 40%
Patients are not a leading cause of injury for EMTs and paramedics. Patients were found to be the source of their injuries only 37% of the time.
About 70%

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How many EMTs were certified in the US in 2016?
About 11,000
About 47,000
About 143,000
About 250,000
In 2016, 253,436 people were certified as EMTs in the US. This is over double the number of certified paramedics that year.

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What is the number one cause of fatalities for EMTs?
Illness
Assault
Transportation related
Over a course of a three-year study, 59 EMT and paramedic deaths were reported. Of those deaths, 86% were transportation related.
None of the above

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