Medical Billing And Coding Salary Or How Much Can I Earn?

Medical billing is used to simplify the complexity of the reimbursement of the insurance claims. This is highly technical in nature and needs proper knowledge of the medical and pharmaceutical terms, so this job is entrusted into the hands of well trained professionals. Physicians hire them to avoid any error made during billing, as it results in penalties for every incorrect entry made. So, medical billers and coders act as the gatekeepers of the physicians against the insurance companies.

A medical biller and coder can choose to work from an office or their home. They have a choice to work for independent physicians or for a big healthcare firm. This profession is highly flexible in nature with respect to its working conditions as well as its income. We cannot determine a definite amount earned by a medical biller and a coder. It all depends on the healthcare centre or the physician you are working with and also your proximity.

According to a popular poll results, a medical billing specialist earns an average of $31,000 per annum and a medical coding specialist earns an average of $40,000 per annum. Generally, a medical coding specialist can handle medical billing. Another survey conducted by American Academy of Professional Coders (AAPC), gives a result that a coder without certification earns around $30,000 per annum, and a certified coder earns around $38,000 per annum. If the coder holds a higher position like a consultant coder then he earns about a $50,000 per annum.

Some areas with higher spectrum give a starting salary of $35,000 per annum, where as quintessential coding firms charges each outpatient report $17 to code. A certified coder working from home can charge around 70 cents per code, if working for individual clients. These are self-employed coders, otherwise known as independent contractors whose contracts also include a percentage of the revenue that is paid on processed insurance claims. This is the way that highly skilled medical coding and billing professionals make upward of $100,000 per annum. But, a starting medical billing and coding specialist, who might begin more as a data entry person than a professional coder and biller, might only make a working hourly wage $8 to $10. However once you have gained experience and have proven that you can handle higher responsibility then you are looking at making $30 to $40 an hour. Although that may appear to be a very high variance between starting wage and experienced wage, one has to take into consideration an unproven novice that makes coding mistakes is very costly to the employer.

Nevertheless, the highly flexible nature of a medical billing and coding career gives an individual a choice to choose their own working style as per their financial requirements. Thus making the medical billing and coding salary for novices less important as the field offers a freedom from corporate bondage, that cannot be put a price on It's not always just about money.

Medical Billing