Per capita public health spending at the state level in Wyoming was the 11th highest in the country in fiscal year 2013-14. Additional funding from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) specifically allocated for Wyoming’s public health programs was the sixth highest in the nation that year. Such high levels of spending on public health help fund job opportunities and increase salary potential for public health professionals, while also funding critical programs:
- Environmental health specialists with the Wyoming Department of Agriculture work in concert with public health professionals in the Department of Health to help ensure residents of the state have safe drinking water and food supplies.
- Inspectors with the Consumer Health Services division of the agriculture department work with the state epidemiologist and other public health officials to monitor reports of infectious diseases on a weekly basis.
- Epidemiologists with the Wyoming Department of Health monitor approximately 80 different types of communicable diseases, in 2014 identifying a 300% increase in the rate of pertussis.
The joint efforts of Wyoming’s state, local, and federal public health professionals along with those in academia and non-governmental organizations have helped to substantially improve public health in the state over the long-term. Successes include a 42% drop in infant mortality between 1990 and 2014 and a decrease in the rate of smoking of 10% between 2012 and 2014.
A Comparison of Public Health Salaries in Cheyenne
The Wyoming Department of Workforce Services provides the salaries for a number of public health professionals employed in the Cheyenne metropolitan statistical area in 2014. Those with advanced degrees such as a Master of Public Health are likely to earn in the higher percentiles of the salary ranges shown.
A Full Analysis of Public Health Salaries Throughout Wyoming
In 2014, epidemiologists in Wyoming earning in the 90th percentile made $98,257 while the median among these professionals was $55,643 according to the Wyoming Department of Workforce Services.
The US Bureau of Labor Statistics provides a full salary analysis for a number of other public health occupational classifications found in Wyoming (2014):
