Billing specialist vs medical billing clerk

The differences between billing specialists and medical billing clerks can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a billing specialist and a medical billing clerk. Additionally, a billing specialist has an average salary of $35,624, which is higher than the $33,566 average annual salary of a medical billing clerk.

The top three skills for a billing specialist include patients, customer service and data entry. The most important skills for a medical billing clerk are patients, medical billing, and healthcare.

Billing specialist vs medical billing clerk overview

	Billing Specialist	Medical Billing Clerk
Yearly salary	$35,624	$33,566
Hourly rate	$17.13	$16.14
Growth rate	-3%	-3%
Number of jobs	55,205	164,870
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 31%	Associate Degree, 30%
Average age	46	46
Years of experience	2	2

What does a billing specialist do?

Billing specialists are accounting or finance employees who are responsible for sending out billing invoices to clients. They calculate charges that their clients have incurred. They then write bills, ensure that all details are correct, and send these out to clients. They also manage payment due dates and ensure that clients are duly reminded of such deadlines. Billing specialists also manage client accounts and ensure that they are paying on time. They help identify clients who have outstanding payables and send out collection notices to them. At times, billing specialists also manage the receipt of payments to manage account records better.

What does a medical billing clerk do?

A medical billing clerk is primarily in charge of processing payments and creating billing arrangements in clinics and hospitals. Among their responsibilities include gathering and verifying patient identification, handling insurance information, coding, updating databases, and maintaining records. It is also their responsibility to assist patients by filling out forms, answering their inquiries, and referring them to other services. Moreover, a medical billing clerk must monitor patient accounts and follow-up on delinquent patient accounts, coordinating with collection agencies as needed.

Billing specialist vs medical billing clerk salary

Billing specialists and medical billing clerks have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Billing Specialist	Medical Billing Clerk
Average salary	$35,624	$33,566
Salary range	Between $27,000 And $45,000	Between $27,000 And $40,000
Highest paying City	Washington, DC	San Leandro, CA
Highest paying state	Delaware	Washington
Best paying company	TIBCO Software	iCare
Best paying industry	Manufacturing	Health Care

Differences between billing specialist and medical billing clerk education

There are a few differences between a billing specialist and a medical billing clerk in terms of educational background:

	Billing Specialist	Medical Billing Clerk
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 31%	Associate Degree, 30%
Most common major	Business	Health Care Administration
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	Stanford University

Billing specialist vs medical billing clerk demographics

Here are the differences between billing specialists' and medical billing clerks' demographics:

	Billing Specialist	Medical Billing Clerk
Average age	46	46
Gender ratio	Male, 12.7% Female, 87.3%	Male, 11.3% Female, 88.7%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 10.9% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 19.2% Asian, 7.4% White, 57.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%	Black or African American, 10.4% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 21.9% Asian, 6.8% White, 55.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between billing specialist and medical billing clerk duties and responsibilities

Billing specialist example responsibilities.

Use of QuickBooks to manage vendors' accounts, set up filing system to maintain files and supporting billing documents.
Manage the daily correspondence with keeping doctor/patient confidentiality under consideration along with HIPPA regulations.
Use independent judgment, manage and impart confidential information appropriately per HIPAA regulations and company requirements.
Accept and process healthcare claims and confidential medical records; verify patient eligibility and manage the Medicare and Medicaid billing process.
Provide additional information/clarification for insurance claims using knowledge of CPT, ICD-9, and HCPCS codes, as well as modifiers.
Assist staff with proper billing for patients, ensure proper coding using ICD-10, ICD-9 and CPT-4 coding.

Medical billing clerk example responsibilities.

Accept and process healthcare claims and confidential medical records; verify patient eligibility and manage the Medicare and Medicaid billing process.
Interact with patients as part of the quality assurance process (follow-up, EHR confirmation, billing confirmation).
Reconcile insurance and patient payments while researching and resolving incorrect payments, EOB rejections, and assort issues with outstanding accounts.
Utilize medical terminology and follow HIPAA guidelines.
Bill Magellan through Nextgen system.
Double checked CMS-1500 form before posting it out to the insurance companies.

Billing specialist vs medical billing clerk skills

Common billing specialist skills

Patients, 16%
Customer Service, 10%
Data Entry, 9%
Medical Billing, 7%
Medicaid, 6%
CPT, 3%

Common medical billing clerk skills

Patients, 18%
Medical Billing, 10%
Healthcare, 7%
Data Entry, 7%
Customer Service, 6%
Medicaid, 5%

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Billing Specialist
Billing Specialist vs Medical Billing Clerk

Updated January 8, 2025

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