Admitting clerk vs patient access representative

The differences between admitting clerks and patient access representatives can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become an admitting clerk, becoming a patient access representative takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a patient access representative has an average salary of $33,603, which is higher than the $31,833 average annual salary of an admitting clerk.

The top three skills for an admitting clerk include patients, customer service and medical terminology. The most important skills for a patient access representative are patients, customer service, and medical terminology.

Admitting clerk vs patient access representative overview

	Admitting Clerk	Patient Access Representative
Yearly salary	$31,833	$33,603
Hourly rate	$15.30	$16.16
Growth rate	-	-4%
Number of jobs	106,698	151,077
Job satisfaction	-	5
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 29%	Bachelor's Degree, 36%
Average age	42	40
Years of experience	2	4

What does an admitting clerk do?

The job of an admitting clerk is to register and admit patients to a hospital. Admitting clerks interview patients in getting the necessary financial and medical information for the admission. They verify the insurance of patients and make sure that their registration forms are accurately signed. Usually, they work on the medical profession and hospital front lines. They welcome and face customers and need to understand medicine. Also, they are expected to manage doctors, nurses, patients, and hospital policies.

What does a patient access representative do?

A Patient Access Representative is the first point of contact of a patient in a hospital facility. Among the duties include the checking-in and out of a patient, gathering a patient's information for the Doctors and Nurses to use, communicates with the patient's family or caregivers, and processes insurance billing. Most of the time, A Patient Access Representative encounters the critically ill or injured which is why one must possess great communication skills and compassion.

Admitting clerk vs patient access representative salary

Admitting clerks and patient access representatives have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Admitting Clerk	Patient Access Representative
Average salary	$31,833	$33,603
Salary range	Between $24,000 And $41,000	Between $27,000 And $41,000
Highest paying City	-	Springfield, MA
Highest paying state	-	Massachusetts
Best paying company	-	University of California, Berkeley
Best paying industry	-	Health Care

Differences between admitting clerk and patient access representative education

There are a few differences between an admitting clerk and a patient access representative in terms of educational background:

	Admitting Clerk	Patient Access Representative
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 29%	Bachelor's Degree, 36%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Admitting clerk vs patient access representative demographics

Here are the differences between admitting clerks' and patient access representatives' demographics:

	Admitting Clerk	Patient Access Representative
Average age	42	40
Gender ratio	Male, 9.3% Female, 90.7%	Male, 14.5% Female, 85.5%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 13.1% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 22.4% Asian, 4.5% White, 53.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0%	Black or African American, 12.5% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 19.9% Asian, 6.5% White, 55.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	9%	7%

Differences between admitting clerk and patient access representative duties and responsibilities

Admitting clerk example responsibilities.

Manage confidential patient information according to HIPPA guidelines.
Assist patients with benefit verification, including Medicare and Medicaid.
Perform online verification of Medicaid and Medicare admissions to insure eligibility.
Schedule patients for special procedures and radiology exams, obtain prior authorizations and referrals.
Release medical records upon request and maintain confidentiality of patients information under HIPPA law.
Process paperwork for various departments including insurance, surgery, radiology, laboratory and the emergency room.

Patient access representative example responsibilities.

Use EMR software to manage patient records and files; reinforce and uphold patient confidentiality as required by HIPPA and clinic.
Conduct intensive screening of all Medicare, Medicaid and manage care patients for provider service eligibility.
Educate eligible applicants about Medicaid manage care and how to access benefits in a manage care environment.
Run internal reports to ensure ICD 9 and CPT procedure codes are accurate for billing for Medicare and Medicaid patients.
Deliver quality customer service and compassion while obtaining demographic and financial data from patients seeking emergency medical services.
Operate front desk check-in, preparation of charts, receive payments and balance books at the end of the day.

Admitting clerk vs patient access representative skills

Common admitting clerk skills

Patients, 40%
Customer Service, 10%
Medical Terminology, 5%
Data Entry, 5%
Computer System, 3%
Phone Calls, 3%

Common patient access representative skills

Patients, 20%
Customer Service, 13%
Medical Terminology, 9%
Patient Care, 5%
Patient Registration, 5%
Insurance Verification, 4%

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Admitting Clerk
Admitting Clerk vs Patient Access Representative

Updated January 8, 2025

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