Medicaid specialist vs billing specialist

The differences between medicaid specialists and billing specialists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a medicaid specialist and a billing specialist. Additionally, a medicaid specialist has an average salary of $44,308, which is higher than the $35,624 average annual salary of a billing specialist.

The top three skills for a medicaid specialist include patients, home health and medicaid eligibility. The most important skills for a billing specialist are patients, customer service, and data entry.

Medicaid specialist vs billing specialist overview

	Medicaid Specialist	Billing Specialist
Yearly salary	$44,308	$35,624
Hourly rate	$21.30	$17.13
Growth rate	-	-3%
Number of jobs	73,368	55,205
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 53%	Bachelor's Degree, 31%
Average age	46	46
Years of experience	2	2

What does a medicaid specialist do?

A Medicaid Specialist is a social service worker who focuses on assisting individuals when it comes to Medicaid programs. They are responsible for helping individuals understand the health care system procedures and requirements, answering inquiries, or referring them to other services. There are also Medicaid specialists who mostly perform clerical support tasks such as gathering and verifying documents, conducting research and analyses, handling calls and correspondence, reaching out to medical facilities and insurance companies, and maintaining records.

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.

Medicaid specialist vs billing specialist salary

Medicaid specialists and billing specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Medicaid Specialist	Billing Specialist
Average salary	$44,308	$35,624
Salary range	Between $29,000 And $67,000	Between $27,000 And $45,000
Highest paying City	-	Washington, DC
Highest paying state	-	Delaware
Best paying company	-	TIBCO Software
Best paying industry	-	Manufacturing

Differences between medicaid specialist and billing specialist education

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

	Medicaid Specialist	Billing Specialist
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 53%	Bachelor's Degree, 31%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Michigan - Ann Arbor	University of Pennsylvania

Medicaid specialist vs billing specialist demographics

Here are the differences between medicaid specialists' and billing specialists' demographics:

	Medicaid Specialist	Billing Specialist
Average age	46	46
Gender ratio	Male, 16.7% Female, 83.3%	Male, 12.7% Female, 87.3%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 21.6% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 14.7% Asian, 7.8% White, 50.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2%	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%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between medicaid specialist and billing specialist duties and responsibilities

Medicaid specialist example responsibilities.

Generate reports for managing compliance with Medicaid documentation in support of electronic billing to MCO
Acquire valuable expertise of HIPAA, Medicaid and patient confidentiality.
Provide excellent compassionate customer service to all patients, honoring patient privacy according to HIPAA regulations.
Review referrals and screen all uninsure patients seen at contract HCA hospitals for potential Medicaid and/or disability eligibility.
Adhere to all HIPPA laws.
Ensure ICD-9-CM, CPT, and HCPCS codes are correct for billing.

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.

Medicaid specialist vs billing specialist skills

Common medicaid specialist skills

Patients, 23%
Home Health, 13%
Medicaid Eligibility, 13%
Rehabilitation, 9%
Social Work, 5%
Term Care, 4%

Common billing specialist skills

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

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Office and Administrative Industry
Medicaid Specialist
Medicaid Specialist vs Billing Specialist

Updated January 8, 2025

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