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Michigan’s race to the bottom

TL;DR - Early data shows Michigan’s MPJE decision having negative impacts on pharmacist wages, especially in the retail setting.

Earlier this year, the Michigan Joint Committee on Administrative Rules (JCAR) made the decision to no longer require the multistate pharmacy jurisprudence exam (MPJE). Michigan is not the first state to do away with the MPJE but is the most recent state on a short list. This decision will surely entice pharmacists to flock from all over the country. How does more competition impact pharmacist wages? Exactly how you might think.

Pharmacist Compensation evaluated data to compare the US median wages versus the state of Michigan. The Q1 2024 data showed Michigan’s median annual wages ($144k) very much aligned with the US median annual wages ($142k). Then the removal of the MPJE requirement went into effect (Q2) and the Michigan median annual wages significantly dropped.

The above chart indicates the Q3 Michigan wages ‘recovering’ to get closer to the US median wage. Unfortunately, the story for Michigan retail pharmacists is the opposite. Their wages seemed to drift further away from the US median.

Good news for Michigan hospital pharmacists, the Q2 drop off seemed to be short-lived and recovered in Q3.

Stating the obvious - the top employers of pharmacists are in the retail and hospital sectors. Early data shows Michigan’s MPJE decision having negative impacts on pharmacist wages, especially in the retail setting.

_{Pharmacist Compensation provided the data displayed in the above charts. Join thousands of pharmacists and take the anonymous survey. All participants receive access to an interactive dashboard that can be filtered by Job Title, Company, Area of Pharmacy, and more.}

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