The medical profession requires a lot of paperwork. This includes documenting patient care for healthcare records, as well as billing and invoicing.
Typically, some physicians find tasks like this mundane, creating opportunities for professional medical billers.
If you intend to explore this job role or hire someone for it, you might want to learn more about the updated medical billing salary.
Note: Medical billers and coders are often confused as the same thing, but these are actually two different jobs.
For the sake of this article, we will be focusing on the salary of a medical billing specialist.
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Average Medical Billing Salary
The average Medical billing salary is $40,000 or $19 per hour
To arrive at this data, we combined figures from the top salary report boards
- ZipRecruiter: $42,673, or an hourly rate of $20.52
- Glassdoor: $48,046
- Salary.com: $46,369
Keep reading to learn about the various factors that affect how much you can expect to pay a medical coder or biller.
Top 10 US Cities with the Medical Billing Salary
| City | Annual Salary | Monthly Pay | Hourly Wage |
| Maple Valley, WA | $53,439 | $4,453 | $25.69 |
| Berkeley, CA | $52,239 | $4,353 | $25.12 |
| New York City, NY | $50,540 | $4,211 | $24.30 |
| Renton, WA | $50,262 | $4,188 | $24.16 |
| Holdrege, NE | $50,078 | $4,173 | $24.08 |
| Santa Monica, CA | $49,912 | $4,159 | $24.00 |
| Daly City, CA | $49,437 | $4,119 | $23.77 |
| Bailey’s Crossroads, VA | $49,291 | $4,107 | $23.70 |
| Berlin, MA | $49,097 | $4,091 | $23.60 |
| Woburn, MA | $48,879 | $4,073 | $23.50 |
Source: ZipRecruiter
Factors That Affect Medical Billing and Coding Salaries
Just as a physician would be paid differently depending on their unique situation, medical records specialists earn different amounts based on various factors.
Here are the four main factors that can change how much a medical office should pay its biller:
1. Certification
Those pursuing a medical billing career don’t need much education to begin.
In fact, after a student receives their high school diploma, they can choose to pursue an associate’s degree, a bachelor’s degree, or just a certification.
As long as they follow a course that teaches them basic medical terminology, anatomy, and CPT and ICD-10 coding guidelines, they can enter the workforce.
A medical billing certification course can be completed in as little as six weeks.
However, many medical coders or billers opt to continue their education and earn a higher level of certification to earn a higher salary.
The AAPC is one of the two main medical billing and medical coding programs in this country.
It turns out that the range from the lowest certification, which is a certified professional biller (CPB), and their highest certification, a certified professional compliance officer (CPBO), is almost $25,000 per year.
In fact, there are eleven different certifications that a medical billing specialist can attain, each increasing their average pay, as this table shows:
| Certification | Acronym | Average Pay |
| Certified Professional Biller | CPB | $56,981 |
| Certified Inpatient Coder | CIC | $58,730 |
| Certified Professional Coder | CPC | $58,895 |
| Certified Professional Coder-Payer | CPC-P | $62,494 |
| Certified Outpatient Coder | COC | $64,267 |
| Certified Risk Adjustment Coder | CRC | $64,192 |
| Certified Professional Medical Auditor | CPMA | $72,304 |
| Certified Professional Practice Manager | CPPM | $75,699 |
| Certified Documentation Expert-Outpatient | CDEO | $72,619 |
| Certified Professional Coder-Instructor | CPC-I | $76,804 |
| Certified Professional Compliance Officer | CPCO | $81,495 |
2. Experience
The amount of experience a medical billing specialist has in the workforce will affect their earnings.
Payscale shows the hourly wage of a medical biller to begin at $18.60, with the possibility of raising that wage by over five dollars per hour after gaining 20 years of experience.
According to the AAPC salary survey, entry-level billers with 1-3 years of work experience earn around $45,456 per year.
Those with 4-7 years of experience earn $50,490, on average.
The biggest jump comes when a medical biller has accumulated 8-10 years of experience.
At that point, they earn an average salary of $57,769 per year.
3. Location
To pay a competitive wage, employers account for the cost of living and the average salary being paid to medical billers in the area.
According to ZipRecruiter, the top-paying states for a medical biller include New York, New Hampshire, and California.
The AAPC salary survey lists D.C., Hawaii, California, and Massachusetts as the areas with the highest-paying medical billing jobs.
This survey also breaks down the average medical billing salary by region.
According to their data, the area with the highest medical billing salary, on average, is the West Coast.
Next are the New England states and then the Mid-Atlantic.
The area where medical billers earn the least is the East South Central states.
4. Type of Practice
A medical biller’s salary will also change based on the type of practice that hires them.
The AAPC salary survey has good information on this, as well.
According to their research, the bigger the employer a medical biller works for, the more money they will make.
Here’s how practice types rank when it comes to medical biller salaries:
- Health system
- Inpatient/outpatient hospital
- Large group practice
- Medium group practice
- Solo practice
Outsourcing vs. On Staff
When hiring for medical billing specialists, you’re faced with some big questions:
Should you hire them as an employee or outsource an outside agency?
And if you decide to hire an employee, will they be an in-house staff member or work remotely?
In this section, we will focus on the pros and cons of each and weigh them out according to cost.
On Staff
Traditionally, the job description of a medical biller would include working from the physical location of the physician’s office that employed them.
They would be responsible for billing patients for healthcare services and filling out insurance claims from that location.
However, many of the new jobs in the medical billing field are completed off-site or remotely.
So, are in-house billing clerks a better option?
Let’s look at the pros and cons:
| Pros | Cons |
| In-house billing provides the physician with more control over the finances | Full-time medical billers usually come with more costs |
| You gain a rapport with in-house staff, and you can oversee their work | You are solely responsible for any errors, neglect, or even embezzlement that happens in your medical billing department |
| There’s convenience in accessibility | You may need more than one staff hire |
Remote
Another option for physicians is to hire a remote medical biller to care for these responsibilities.
By outsourcing to an off-site medical biller, you’ll get many of the benefits of in-house staff.
| Pros | Cons |
| Employees will be classified as independent contractors, which cuts out W2 employee expenses. | You risk violating HIPAA rules if this individual does not secure your patients’ data |
| The contractor would focus more when in a comfortable location instead of being distracted by visiting patients | There are higher chances of miscommunication |
| An independent contractor, they may be available to work more than other employees | You are unable to oversee their work and determine their effectiveness |
Medical Billing Service
Another option is to outsource your medical billing to a third-party service provider.
This is becoming an increasingly popular option in the medical industry, and it could be the best option for your practice.
| Pros | Cons |
| They take a lot of responsibility off your shoulders, making it more convenient | You have little control over the financial aspects of your practice |
| Outsourcing your medical billing is extremely cost-effective | The cost of your medical billing services will be determined by the volume of collections. |
Work Smarter with Physicians Thrive
As a physician, you could lighten your load by hiring a medical biller. Remember to check for certifications and experience.
Avoid hiring the least expensive medical biller you can find. You get what you pay for, and it isn’t worth tarnishing your practice’s good reputation.
If you choose to outsource your medical billing process, look over their reviews online and ask for a list of all of their fees before deciding.
For more help managing your finances, contact the Physicians Thrive team today.
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