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The differences between claim specialists and medical claims examiners can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a claim specialist and a medical claims examiner. Additionally, a claim specialist has an average salary of $43,164, which is higher than the $42,773 average annual salary of a medical claims examiner.
The top three skills for a claim specialist include customer service, litigation and patients. The most important skills for a medical claims examiner are medical terminology, customer service, and data entry.
| Claim Specialist | Medical Claims Examiner | |
| Yearly salary | $43,164 | $42,773 |
| Hourly rate | $20.75 | $20.56 |
| Growth rate | -6% | -6% |
| Number of jobs | 29,505 | 57,125 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 54% | Bachelor's Degree, 36% |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
A claims specialist is responsible for processing insurance claims, reviewing insurance coverage, and analyzing claims cases. Claims specialists' duties include negotiating claims settlements, validating claims to prevent fraud, creating court testimonies as needed, developing claim review plans, and checking necessary documents and related resolve claims. A claims specialist must have strong analytical and critical-thinking skills to authorize claim payment and investigate complex and unusual claims. Claims specialists should also have extensive knowledge of the insurance processes to handle various cases, following legal policies and regulatory procedures.
A medical claims examiner determines whether an insurer will be covering losses from accidents and illness. They are responsible for evaluating insurance claims and applications, following up with insurance adjusters to protect an insurer from financial loss, ensuring information integrity, and ensuring standard guidelines are adhered to. They are also tasked with approving payment and facilitating additional investigation. Qualifications for this position include knowledge of medical terminology.
Claim specialists and medical claims examiners have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Claim Specialist | Medical Claims Examiner | |
| Average salary | $43,164 | $42,773 |
| Salary range | Between $27,000 And $67,000 | Between $30,000 And $59,000 |
| Highest paying City | Newark, NJ | Los Angeles, CA |
| Highest paying state | New Jersey | New Jersey |
| Best paying company | W. R. Berkley | UST Global |
| Best paying industry | Insurance | Technology |
There are a few differences between a claim specialist and a medical claims examiner in terms of educational background:
| Claim Specialist | Medical Claims Examiner | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 54% | Bachelor's Degree, 36% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | Stanford University | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between claim specialists' and medical claims examiners' demographics:
| Claim Specialist | Medical Claims Examiner | |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 31.0% Female, 69.0% | Male, 16.6% Female, 83.4% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 11.4% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 16.5% Asian, 5.1% White, 62.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% | Black or African American, 10.5% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 17.0% Asian, 5.3% White, 62.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% |
| LGBT Percentage | 10% | 10% |