What does a billing associate do?
A billing associate is responsible for processing payments and invoices for customers and ensuring accurate financial reports for auditing purposes. Billing associates utilize the business' accounting systems to monitor billing transactions and resolve account discrepancies accordingly. They also update customer records in the database, post payments timely, and escalate outstanding bills to the supervisor for resolution. A billing associate reaches out to the clients and customers for payment responsibility and respond to the inquiries and concerns they may have.
Billing associate responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real billing associate resumes:
- Manage the submission and reimbursement of claims bill to insurance companies using ICD-9 coding.
- Accept and process healthcare claims and confidential medical records; verify patient eligibility and manage the Medicare and Medicaid billing process.
- Verify correct ICD-9 and CPT codes for a variety of specialties submission of electronic claims to clearinghouse.
- Ensure appropriate medical terminology and HIPAA compliance for all claims entry/online submissions, payment posting, insurance and patient aging.
- Help office transition from patient charts to new EMR system.
- Scan in all documents to EMR routing reports and labs to ordering physicians.
- Verify and ensure accuracy, completeness, and specifics of ICD-9 codes and HCPC codes.
- Provide consultations to physicians and office staff to insure proper record documentation and CPT and ICD-9-CM coding
- Acquire knowledge of confidentiality and HIPAA guidelines
- Process and bill non-emergency Medicaid patient transportation, utilizing driver's logs/data.
- Post payments from insurance companies and patients, post medical record payments, verify patient insurance and eligibility and answer telephones
- Engage in patient registration and insurance verification-manage billing for patients and the collection of payments-engage in weekly interactions with private health insurers
- Assist coworkers with difficult claims/system issues and train new employees on system and insurance regulations per Medicaid/Medicare guidelines.
- Check Medi-Cal eligibility auditing of clinical documentation and billing.
- Prepare monthly Medicare reports and Medi-Cal insurance by summarizing billings and revenues receive.
Billing associate skills and personality traits
We calculated that 15% of Billing Associates are proficient in Patients, Customer Service, and Data Entry. They’re also known for soft skills such as Communication skills, Math skills, and Organizational skills.
We break down the percentage of Billing Associates that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Patients, 15%
Engaged in patient registration and insurance verification-Managed billing for patients and the collection of payments-Engaged in weekly interactions with private health insurers
- Customer Service, 12%
Provide second level billing support to customer service representatives and various departments' management.
- Data Entry, 11%
Corrected billing option errors through our Consolidated Data Capture system or data entry, contacting customers to verify and obtain package information
- Medical Billing, 5%
Job responsibilities primarily included medical billing and administrative duties.
- Insurance Billing, 3%
Resolved escalated insurance billing discrepancies with Medicaid, HMO'S and private insurers via phone, and online.
- Billing Inquiries, 3%
Fielded and resolved billing inquiries/issues.
"patients," "customer service," and "data entry" are among the most common skills that billing associates use at work. You can find even more billing associate responsibilities below, including:
Communication skills. The most essential soft skill for a billing associate to carry out their responsibilities is communication skills. This skill is important for the role because "financial clerks should be able to explain policies and procedures to colleagues and customers." Additionally, a billing associate resume shows how their duties depend on communication skills: "processed medicare and medicaid billing data entry and payment posting skills phone communication with clients/patients"
Math skills. Many billing associate duties rely on math skills. "the job duties of financial clerks includes calculating charges and updating financial records.," so a billing associate will need this skill often in their role. This resume example is just one of many ways billing associate responsibilities rely on math skills: "balance figures, compute totals & perform mathematic calculations on customer accounts. "
Organizational skills. billing associates are also known for organizational skills, which are critical to their duties. You can see how this skill relates to billing associate responsibilities, because "financial clerks must be able to arrange files so they can find them quickly and efficiently." A billing associate resume example shows how organizational skills is used in the workplace: "applied analytical and organizational skills to balance a/r on a weekly basis, and provided accountability for all company billing. "
The three companies that hire the most billing associates are:
- Proud Moments ABA7 billing associates jobs
- Res-Care Premier6 billing associates jobs
- Huron Consulting Group4 billing associates jobs
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Compare different billing associates
Billing associate vs. Accounts payable clerk
An accounts payable clerk is responsible for supporting the accounting department by performing clerical duties to file financial reports timely and accurately. Accounts payable clerks manage and verify invoices documents, reconcile balance spreadsheets, process payments for suppliers and vendors, resolve billing discrepancies, confirm and post account statements, record outstanding credits, and maintain an organized record of transactions. An accounts payable clerk must have excellent knowledge of the accounting principles to deliver high-quality services and help the business minimize excessive financial loss.
While similarities exist, there are also some differences between billing associates and accounts payable clerk. For instance, billing associate responsibilities require skills such as "patients," "medical billing," "insurance billing," and "billing inquiries." Whereas a accounts payable clerk is skilled in "purchase orders," "expense reports," "vendor statements," and "payroll." This is part of what separates the two careers.
Accounts payable clerks tend to make the most money working in the technology industry, where they earn an average salary of $41,570. In contrast, billing associates make the biggest average salary, $37,737, in the technology industry.accounts payable clerks tend to reach similar levels of education than billing associates. In fact, accounts payable clerks are 0.4% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.1% less likely to have a Doctoral Degree.Billing associate vs. Accountable clerk
The duties of an accountable clerk vary in one's industry of employment. Typically, their responsibilities revolve around overseeing the financial aspects of a company, including revenue and budget. They mostly process payments and income, ensuring accuracy in every detail and transaction. An accountable clerk may also have clerical tasks such as producing progress reports, answering calls and correspondence, coordinating with various department personnel, and maintaining a database of information. Should there be any issues, it is essential to report to a manager right away.
While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that billing associate responsibilities requires skills like "patients," "medical billing," "insurance billing," and "billing inquiries." But an accountable clerk might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "financial reports," "purchase orders," "process payroll," and "office equipment."
On average, accountable clerks earn a higher salary than billing associates. Some industries support higher salaries in each profession. Interestingly enough, accountable clerks earn the most pay in the government industry with an average salary of $40,489. Whereas billing associates have higher pay in the technology industry, with an average salary of $37,737.In general, accountable clerks achieve similar levels of education than billing associates. They're 0.7% less likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 0.1% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Billing associate vs. Finance clerk
Finance clerks are financial professionals who are responsible for performing various administrative tasks such as keeping financial records, preparing bills, and delivering excellent customer service. These clerks are required to process bills, checks, receipts, and other documents to ensure that they are all properly signed and distributed. They must verify financial and other data so that they can enter those data into the database and maintain updated records. Finance clerks must also assist with account reconciliations and should report the status of accounts and discrepancies to the management.
There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, a billing associate is likely to be skilled in "patients," "customer service," "medical billing," and "insurance billing," while a typical finance clerk is skilled in "purchase orders," "hr," "bank statements," and "credit card."
Finance clerks earn the highest salary when working in the government industry, where they receive an average salary of $40,090. Comparatively, billing associates have the highest earning potential in the technology industry, with an average salary of $37,737.finance clerks typically earn similar educational levels compared to billing associates. Specifically, they're 0.1% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.5% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Billing associate vs. Accounts receivable analyst
An Accounts Receivable Analyst provides accounts receivable support through monitoring all aspects of the collection of outstanding debts owed to a company. They check missing and unresolved payment issues, monitor overdue accounts, and prepare statements for managers.
Types of billing associate
Updated January 8, 2025
