What are typical medical billing specialist salaries?

between work and school not easy.
just whish that I was full time at school.
It take me 48mn to go to work if there is no traffic.
I dream is getting job close to about 10 Mn and than continue my education.

mina from atlant ga

I went to Everest College for medical insurance billing and coding in Missouri and I graduated December 12, 2007. Now I am just finding out that I can become certfied in missouri, but I don't have a practice test because I heard the test is hard and I have not been able to find a job in my field. The school I attended, I had only recieve a diploma. But is it possible to get a medical insurance billing and coding job with just the diploma. I need some helpful information.

Shamell,

yes, it is possible, but certification in the specialty of your choice--billing or coding would help put you a 'step above' the rest!!

hi mina from ga in Rome, Georgia said: anyone from atlant ga?

I 30 minutes west of Atlanta.

Hi. I am so sad. I did College fr Medical Billing and coding, I am national certified as Medical Insurance and Coding Specialist, I was graduated with honors with a GPA 4.0 and nothing of this helps me to get a job. I spended $15.000DLS in this career and no1 gives me the chance to start...All the doors are closed to me. All medical offices requires experience, I have some medical and Insurance experience + a year of college (training) as a medical coding and billing...I am so sad, and I feel that I took the wrong decision when I decided to do College, total, I can get the same salary without doing college, for example: Progressive pays $18.00 per hour in the Customer Service position.......I feel sad and frustrated, I want to get the opportunity to work in what I like.

Bonus: When I started College I did not Know English, after that I learned something. I tryed to do my best, did it worth?????

Sharon Esteves in Miami, Florida said: Hi. I am so sad. I did College fr Medical Billing and coding, I am national certified as Medical Insurance and Coding Specialist, I was graduated with honors with a GPA 4.0 and nothing of this helps me to get a job. I spended $15.000DLS in this career and no1 gives me the chance to start...All the doors are closed to me. All medical offices requires experience, I have some medical and Insurance experience + a year of college (training) as a medical coding and billing...I am so sad, and I feel that I took the wrong decision when I decided to do College, total, I can get the same salary without doing college, for example: Progressive pays $18.00 per hour in the Customer Service position.......I feel sad and frustrated, I want to get the opportunity to work in what I like.

Bonus: When I started College I did not Know English, after that I learned something. I tryed to do my best, did it worth?????

Where did you go to school at?

Hello, that was Florida Career College at Penbroke Pines, Florida.

Hey,
Don't give up it will come. I haave had my certificate since February 2007, and for the past 3 months I have been doing nothing but going to doctors offices personally and just asking if they had any positions available at the front desk or anything that I would qualify to do in there office. Finally I got a phone call last Friday from a very well known doctors office asking me if I would like the position I interviewed for and I started today. So if you are not a quitter you will get it. It just takes perservarance. Don't give up. OK?

Host said: Do some companies pay a lot more for this position than others? What does a top earner make in this field?

What skills should you learn to increase your salary?

It all depends on your experience and where you live.

i just want to know how much do people get for medical billing without a college degree.

You only will need experience. Some medical office do not require you to have a Certificate...Only experience. For example I had an interview with a Chiropractic office, they provide Medical Insurance for the employ plus other benefits, the salary is $18.00 per hour. But because I do not have experience beside my College and Certificate, I did not get the job.

I a medical biller who is going to relocate. I have contacted several staffing offices. They stated to come in and complete some testing. What are involved with these test?

I have no idea but, for sure is about Medical coding and billing knowledge. Good luck!!!!

i am interested in opening a billing/coding office from home. anyone have any ideas on how to get started?? i am a registered nurse with 5 years clinical experience but need to work extra in something else......can anyone give me software names???? how do i start???

Hello Looking For Help In Hollywood,

Here are a few resources that I know will get you on the right path. These are the texts that a medical billing mentor of mine uses to teach his medical billing students so they get a firm understanding about each topic connected with doing medical billing from home:

Medical Billing Beginner’s Book (Detailed Instructions On Starting A Profitable Medical Billing Business From Home) => medicalbillingbooks.tripod.com

How To Market A Medical Billing Business Book => www.urlfreeze.com/medbill/How_To_Market_A_Medical_Billing_Business_Book/

Expanding Your Medical Billing Business Book => www.urlfreeze.com/medbill/Expanding_Your_Medical_Billing_Services_Book/

The Basics of Medical Billing Book => www.urlfreeze.com/medbill/Basics_of_Medical_Billing_Book/

How to Correctly Complete a CMS 1500 Form Book - Line by Line, Box by Box => www.urlfreeze.com/medbill/How_to_Complete_a_CMS_1500_Form/

How to Complete a UB04 Form Book - Line by Line, Box by Box => www.urlfreeze.com/medbill/How_to_Complete_a_UB04_Form/

Mental Health Billing Made Easy => www.urlfreeze.com/medbill/Complete_Mental_Health_Billing_Instruction_Guide/

Shaunta

I want to start a medical billing home business, I have the software and the schooling, but I don't know where to get my first doctor. Any help would be nice. I also want to know are there any medical billing mentors out there.

I would greatly appreciate any help.

Thanks,

Margaret

STARMOON31 in Bronx, New York said: Hey! Mina and Sue, how are you guys doing in your field. Hope everything is well.

Hi

im finishing the last class in billing and coddling, in 4 weeks. Than I have to pass the certified
exam they say we have to cheque the web sit H.I..PA . ARE teacher said it will be in October.
2008 some of 300$.
And she say if we do not passed it for the first time we can try to do it at home by are self on web site.
So I cannot wait to do it.
You have to know about every thing this and that and do coddling.
Amina

I can see that a couple of people here only want to spam the forum and sell you their books and training without really offering any tangible advice.

If you really want to work in medical billing, there are a lot of things you can do to learn this business.

It was already suggested that you volunteer your time to work with a medical biller. That is a good place to start. Or, you can volunteer some time to work in your own doctor's office so you can learn about medical billing.

Getting education is the easy part. Getting doctors is much harder. This is not a get rich quick scheme. You have to learn medical billing and you have to get some experience in order for a doctor to want to turn over their billing to you.

Working on old, unpaid claims is a good way to break into the business for someone that has training but not a lot of experience. If a doctor can't collect these unpaid claims, perhaps he will allow you to work on them. If you can collect them, that would certainly add to your credibility.

Volunteer in your community to work with Seniors to help them resolve their claim issues - this will get you some fast experience with Medicare claims. Medicare sets a lot of standards in this industry and if you know the rules, you can get claims paid.

To learn more about Medicare and to take some free courses that Medicare has, go to cms.meridianksi.com/kc/main/kc_frame.asp?kc_ident=kc0001&loc=1 to take any number of 16 computer based training courses FREE!

Joining a reputable association is always helpful. Don't be fooled by associations that only have 10 or 15 members or haven't updated their website in several years, though. Look for an association that has been in business for at least 5 years and even better if they've been around longer than that. Often, you see people that have a little billing background that think they can get rich quick off of selling medical billing training...

Also, keep in mind that you can check out any training, school or association through the Better Business Bureau. If they have complaints - you probably want to steer clear of that entity. If they aren't a member of the oldest consumer advocacy agency, then they probably are new or they aren't serious about whatever it is they offer. If a company doesn't include their address and telephone number on their website, you probably also want to steer clear of them. It's surprising to me how many people will do business with a company that doesn't even list their address on their website.

Be forewarned of associations that don't offer any real benefits such as a real job board w/jobs, errors & omissions insurance, industry related discounts on products and services, free billing related files, contracts, startup help, HIPAA info, appeals info, clearinghouse info, Medicare related info, annual conferences, local chapters, etc.

Networking with other billers is a great way to learn what works or doesn't work for a medical biller. So, attending live training is important.

Go to a local Medicare or BCBS meeting - you'll be surprised by the opportunities that you might find there. And, doctors and their staff attend these meetings. Go places where doctors and other healthcare providers go to.

Join your local BBB, SCORE, Tips club, Rotary club, chamber of commerce, etc. These people are all willing to help new businesses in getting started.

Join medical billing/coding email groups, forum and listservs that are available to you for free. They are a lot of them out there through yahoo groups, MSN Groups and Google groups.

Hopefully you will find this information helpful. Good luck in your pursuit of a medical billing career and feel free to email me. I love networking with new and experienced billers.

I agree with Cyndee! Be very wary of associations you join, especially if the association does not allow you to be a member of or hold credentials of other organizations! She is also right about going to local Medicare meetings. Look up your Medicare Part B carrier in your state, and you can see a list of training sessions on their website!

Make sure to be aware of your instructors' experience and credentials. Several of the large online schools hire people to teach who did not develop the course/program, and have no experience in the medical billing field whatsover.

Check out the AAPC website to see if their is a local chapter in your area. You don't have to be a CPC to attend. and the meetings offer a wealth of information!

Do you need coding to do billing? AAPC offers both a coding program and billing program.I want to make sure I understand the difference before I commit. I don't think you need coding for billing or do you. I would really love to speak with someone that's quite knowledgeable about both. Why do hospitals prefer the coding certificate from AHIMA? Does it have anything to do with ICD-9 versus ICD-10?

You do not have to be a coder to do billing. Obviously, it helps if you know something about coding, how to look up a code, etc. But you do not have to be a coder to do billing and vice versa.

Hospitals prefer AHIMA because AHIMA is stronger on the hospital coding side. AAPC is stronger on hte Physician side.

ICD-10 is jut not being brought up again. CMS came out with a scheduled date of Oct. 1, 2011 in a new proposed rule as of last week.

AAPC offers the AMBA CMRS exam with their billing program.

Feel free to click on my name to email me directly if you have more questions.

Michelle Rimmer said: >>Be very wary of associations you join, especially if the association does not allow you to be a member of or hold credentials of other organizations! >>

I think that would be an inccorect assumption on your part. I don't know of any association that will not allow one to hold credentials from another association. That's absurd.

But, some associations do hold their members to higher standards that require professionalism, good ethics and morals. So if a person has demonstrated they had poor ethics, then that probably would be a good reason that an association wouldn't allow them to be a member.

Michelle Rimmer said: >> Make sure to be aware of your instructors' experience and credentials. Several of the large online schools hire people to teach who did not develop the course/program, and have no experience in the medical billing field whatsover.>>

Very true. Someone writes a book and all the sudden, they think they know everything. Or, they claim to own a billing service and they don't even follow their own state's laws regarding registration certification.

You do have to be diligent in researching this industry, that's for sure.

Thanks for all the great information, greatly appreciated.

Ingrid Liz in Miami, Florida said: Where did you go to school at?

Florida Career College.

I agree with you Weiler. No doctor in his right mind will hand over accounts to you, if you have not been recommended by someone. Work in an office, learn the ins and outs, and then you can start with 1 account, and move on up.

Hello everyone, I am currently unemployed due to a bad situation and I am seriously thinking about taking the courses for medical billing specialist. I just wanted some feedback from others in this field. How long did it take you to get a job, is having the certificate enough to get a position somewhere and then continuing your education to make more money and how hard is it to work from home? I'm not looking to work from home right away but when i start a family that is my goal. Thank you to anyone with advice.

Hi Everyone.. I was hoping to get some advice! I got my Medical Billing Certificate a couple of years ago and since then I have had a little girl and been spending time with her at home and decided to pursue my photography passion and opened my own studio. Well as you all know, the economy isn't the greatest and it was kind of a bad time to start my own business, so i have decided to keep photography on the side and try to find a job as a Medical Billing Specialist. I was hoping somebody could tell me if it is possible to work at home doing it and if so, is it profitable? And possibly the steps to take to make it work? Thanks Alot and hopefully someone can help me!!

beth in Brooklyn, New York said: Im a billing/coding coordinator at a cancer center in
NY and make $55K. I'm certified and have my BA.

Beth,
How do I go about getting at Home Job in the Medical Billing Field.
I already have my certificate from U.S. Career Institue, and have an office already set up at home. Now I need some clients. Can you help me. I live in Wilmington, Delaware.

my wife has been in the field for 28 years, with only a,
high school education, she makes thirty dollars a hour,
plus five thousand dollar bounus every three months.
working for companies up north, in new jersey and philly pa
but down here you make if, your lucky any were from 13.50 to 17.00
a hour.
however the are companys, that will let you work from home
if that is what you want try ARC group out of philly pa,
if you want to travel around try perot systems out of nashville
they will pay all of your bills, rent and they put you up in really nice places, they pay your g and e phone or cell, cable
pay about fifty grand a year plus bounuses allso.
we did that for 8 years than it got old, but you can save alot of money that way.
I for got to mention my wife can and has worked every class
meaning medaicare, medacaid blue cross, commercial
I hope this hepls someone out there, but what ever you do do not come to flordia thinking you will make good money, it is just
not going to happen. no matter how many degrees you have

fal joe01@aol.com said: my wife has been in the field for 28 years, with only a,
high school education, she makes thirty dollars a hour,
plus five thousand dollar bounus every three months.
working for companies up north, in new jersey and philly pa
but down here you make if, your lucky any were from 13.50 to 17.00
a hour.
however the are companys, that will let you work from home
if that is what you want try ARC group out of philly pa,
if you want to travel around try perot systems out of nashville
they will pay all of your bills, rent and they put you up in really nice places, they pay your g and e phone or cell, cable
pay about fifty grand a year plus bounuses allso.
we did that for 8 years than it got old, but you can save alot of money that way.
I for got to mention my wife can and has worked every class
meaning medaicare, medacaid blue cross, commercial
I hope this hepls someone out there, but what ever you do do not come to flordia thinking you will make good money, it is just
not going to happen. no matter how many degrees you have

Hi, I had just read your comment on and I've been trying to find a medical billing position. I just completed the course and everyone wants someone with experience. Now you said that your wife doesn't have a certificate or degree and she still got a position, that's great. I live about an hour and half from philly and I saw that you mentioned a place ARC? Do they hire without experience? I'm hoping that your comment will help me, I was very excited to read what sucess your wife had. If there is any information that you could provide me with it would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you,
Christian

hOW IN THE HECK DO YOU GET HIRED IN A CLINIC OR ANYWHERE IF YOU HAVE O EXPERIENCE. i HAVE BA degree in Spanish, am bilingual and have completed a bilingual medical interpreter class. How can I get hired, they all want people who are experienced! Is it necessary to volunteer first?
Geeezze this is difficult. Do I need medical billing experience or certificate to get hired for front office receptionist?
Charly

Charly, I totally understand where you are coming from. I am finding the same thing, everyone wants experience. Well how do you get the experience if no one is willing to give you a chance.

hi my name is kristin,i live in Middletown Ohio. I am interested to go to school for BILLING AND CODING but at the same time interested to get my LPNs. What i am asking is, can you find a job for MEDICAL BILLING AND CODING with out experience? And what all do you need to accomplish to make good money? Or should i just go to school to become an LPN? I am currently a CNA and kind of understand the duties of a LPN. Which one is more job demanding? It just seems scarey to me to go to school and pay all that money and not know if you gonna make more than what you paid for. I would greatly appreciate if someone can give me an answer. thanks much, love Kris

I live in Cincinnati, Ohio. Can someone tell me where i can get onlne
training for medical/billing for Home Health Care.

I am also looking for a job in medical billing and coding but no success.

hi, my name is Darline pierre anybody know where they hirin in nj for medical billin and coding

Darline Pierre in Irvington, New Jersey said: hi, my name is Darline pierre anybody know where they hirin in nj for medical billin and coding

If you are a new grad with no experience, it will be a little harder for you to find a job, probably as you have noticed, most employers are looking to hire coders with at least 2 years experience.

The general advice is to try to start somewhere else in HIM, such as medical records, billing, data entry or even front desk, gain medical experience and become more familiar with ICD 9, CPT and reimbursement. Once you have your experience, leverage it for a coding job.

Good Luck

Darline:

Typically, it's either billing or coding, not billing and coding. The biller's job is different than the coder's job in most instances, although many doctor's offices do not have a coder position. What I've see is that group practices are more likely to hire a coder position.

I agree with Valentine - you should start at entry level to gain some experience and knowledge if you are new to billing or coding. You can search ads here and elsewhere (AMBA has a job board) to see what positions are hiring near you. Also, I would search google for "billing, coding help wanted Irvington, NJ" and see if anything pops up. You can substitute the city name for others near you.

Good luck!

Cyndee Weston, CPC, CMC, CMRS
AMBA

Hi all,

I am new to the site, but was curious what other positions should a newbie to billing/coding be looking for in order to get foot through the door, in hopes of someday finding a position from within for billing/coding. I finished school in May of 09 and sat for my AAPC CPC exam in June of 09 and passed it the first time through. I am now looking for a position for billing or coding or both, but realize that i might need to take on something else until a position comes available. Any and all replies as to what you did before finding your job as a biller/coder would be greatly appreciated.

TIA Eleanora CPC-A

TARANJOT KAUR in Detroit, Michigan said: I did medical billing specialist two years ago. I did becholar degree from India and also have computer science, I talked to counselor of university. I don not want be nurse, but I want to know who makes more money, radiologist or ulrtasound specialist, because after I get job of medical billing job, I want do more excluding nursing.

I do not think I want to do nursing either, but I'm suppose to start a mediacal billing program and graduate with a one year diploma. Is it worth it. Can i really get a jpb making about 13 or 14.00 dollars an hour when I'm done

hey i have a month left of my medical assisting program. While in this program i really enjoyed the one billing and coding crash course I took. Medical assistants make about 12 to 15 dollars an hour. I'm thinking about taking more classes so I can become a medical billing and coding specialist. How much do they usually make? how long are the programs for this and can they be taken online? thanks so much!

StephanieHarris in Pickens, South Carolina said: hey i have a month left of my medical assisting program. While in this program i really enjoyed the one billing and coding crash course I took. Medical assistants make about 12 to 15 dollars an hour. I'm thinking about taking more classes so I can become a medical billing and coding specialist. How much do they usually make? how long are the programs for this and can they be taken online? thanks so much!

Yes, you can take billing/coding classes online.

The programs can vary, for a certificate/diploma they range between 6-9 months. Some programs offer self paced classes so you can either go faster or slower.

The pay varies. It depends on your location and the size of the hospital or clinic you work. Generally speaking, a new certified coder, with no coding experience is going to have to take an entry level HIM job, the pay can be between $9-12 depending on the job. Once you gain experience and credentials, your pay usually increases to around $15-17 and can keep going up with experience, $18-22.

I have read all your comments and it's sad that many have spend thousands of dollars on something that cannot be teach is only based on experience. I assisted to the college listed above and also wasted thousand of dollars; I was blessed in finding a job a billing company and was able to gain experience.

If you are going to be looking for a school AHIMA holds the best credentials, make sure the school has accredited programs thru CAHIIM; (RHIT, RHIA and CCS are the best credentials you will get hire without experience).

ahima.org/careers/college_search/search.aspx

On 2013 there will be a great demand on coders with ICD-10 knowledge, all AAPC coder will have to be re-tested on 2012, AHIMA coders will have to do gain only 5 CEU's .

AAPC certification :
www.aapc.com/certification/

RN and LPN: Can get certification as a clinical documentation improvement specialist, they implement and manage documentation improvement at hospitals and clinics. They help physicians document proper progress notes as they are constantly missing linking statements to acute and chronic conditions. www.hcpro.com/acdis/Advisory_Board.cfm

HCC coding from MCO (Managed Care Organizations) diagnosis coding , diagnosis coding to MCO is more important than CPT coding, they get paid by chronic conditions not CPT's.

Learn medical terminology ,anatomy , payer regulations and guidelines. Coders and billers will survived the future changes that ICD-10 brings and the high the demand on coders that have knowledge of anatomy.

Ana

Hi, I live in the Detroit area and the economy is not good right now... I have 2 kids and 1 on the way so it's really hard for me to go to work but I really need to start making money. I got information in the mail for training at home to work at home as Medical Claims & Billing Specialist through U.S. Career Institute. Has anyone did training with this school and if so has it paid off? Are there really at home jobs for this career? I already got scaled by University of Phoenix Online and I don't want to get scamed again... Any advice is greatly appreciated!