Medical Biller & Coder Job Description and Career Guide

In today's world of rising medical costs, billing and coding professionals are essential to managing the cost of healthcare. If you want to become a medical billing and coding specialist, you may have a question, What is a Medical Biller and Coder Career Guide?

August 11, 2022
MBC
Jad Bitar

Introduction

But what exactly is a medical biller, and how does a career in this field differ from that of a coder? And what about the difference between these professions and that of an administrative assistant? What about insurance verification specialist jobs? In this article, we'll answer those questions by outlining what each profession entails.

We'll also cover the education and certification requirements for each profession as well as job outlooks and salaries.

Finally, we'll give you our top advice on how to get started in your new career!

What Do Medical Billers & Coders Do?

Medical billers and coders are highly skilled professionals who work with health care providers to process medical claims. Medically trained and specialized, they ensure that patients receive the benefits they deserve and that medical practices receive payment for their services.

While medical billing and coding are two separate fields, they go hand-in-hand in the healthcare industry: medical billing refers to submitting insurance claims for coverage; coding refers to assigning ICD-10 or Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) codes—which denote procedures, diagnoses, fees and treatments—to each claim.

Medical biller jobs require less education than those in other areas of healthcare administration like nursing or pharmacy management, but still require a strong background in math skills (especially computer operations). In addition to having excellent communication skills and attention to detail, successful applicants should have working knowledge of CPT/ICD-9 diagnostic codes as well as Medicaid/Medicare reimbursement structures.

Where Can a Medical Biller and Coder Work?

The medical billing and coding career is one that can be found in a number of different settings. The most common locations are hospitals, healthcare providers and medical billing and coding companies.

Hospitals: Medical billing and coding professionals will work for a hospital directly or for an outside company that provides services to the hospital. They work with physicians who do the actual care for patients through the patient admission process, so it's important for them to have excellent communication skills so they can work well with everyone involved in each case.
Healthcare Providers: In this setting, medical billers and coders will help doctors' offices manage their paperwork throughout treatment processes. It's important that these professionals have strong attention to detail since they are responsible for making sure all information on forms is correct before submitting them to insurance companies or other third parties (such as Medicare).

How To Find a Good School For Medical Billing and Coding?

When you are starting out as a medical biller, it can be difficult to find a good school. This is especially true if you do not know what your options are or where to look for schools that offer the appropriate training. In this section, we will discuss how to locate a quality trade school and what to look for when choosing one.

To start, there are several different types of schools where you can get certified as a medical biller. The best option is typically going through an accredited vocational or technical school because they offer hands-on training and often have flexible schedules so that working professionals like yourself can attend classes during their off time from work without having any problems with scheduling conflicts or other concerns over having too many classes scheduled at once (which may make things difficult).

The Difference Between Medical Billing and Medical Coding

Although it's not always easy to tell the difference between medical billing and coding, these two roles are very different. They are both part of the healthcare industry, but they are different types of jobs that serve different purposes.

Medical billing is a role within the healthcare industry where you will be responsible for receiving payments from patients or insurance companies on behalf of doctors, clinics and hospitals. Your job responsibilities include:

Collecting fees from patients or insurers
Receiving payment by check, credit card or electronic funds transfer (EFT)
Entering medical information into an electronic database

What Does it Take To Become a Medical Biller and Coder?

Medical billing and coding is a growing field, but it's not always easy to get started. While many medical billers and coders have some type of degree, you don't necessarily need one. Depending on your career path, you may be able to enter the field with a high school diploma or GED and maybe even work your way up from there.

The most common types of education include:

A high school diploma or GED
A certificate or associate's degree in medical billing and coding
A certificate or associate's degree in another related field such as healthcare administration or computer science
A bachelor’s degree in any subject area (this can include degrees like biology)
A bachelor’s degree focused on healthcare management or information technology

Job Outlook for Medical Billers and Coders

The medical billing and coding field is expected to grow because of the increasing complexity of the health care system in the United States, which means that there is a high demand for billers and coders. As a career choice, it’s also attractive because you can specialize in various areas of medicine, from dermatology to cardiology. If you’re interested in pursuing this kind of work, you should know that certification isn’t required for most positions but does help open up more opportunities. Most importantly though, with hard work and dedication you can become an expert biller or coder who will be able to make a difference at their job.

The medical billing and coding field is expected to grow faster than the average for all occupations through 2024.
To become a medical biller or coder, you need to complete training at an accredited program and pass a certification exam.
You can find jobs as a medical biller or coder on job search sites, such as Monster and Indeed.