Medical administrator vs medical clerk

The differences between medical administrators and medical 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 medical administrator and a medical clerk. Additionally, a medical administrator has an average salary of $35,713, which is higher than the $32,439 average annual salary of a medical clerk.

The top three skills for a medical administrator include patients, patient care and medical terminology. The most important skills for a medical clerk are patients, medical terminology, and data entry.

Medical administrator vs medical clerk overview

	Medical Administrator	Medical Clerk
Yearly salary	$35,713	$32,439
Hourly rate	$17.17	$15.60
Growth rate	-8%	-8%
Number of jobs	104,510	166,322
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 33%	Bachelor's Degree, 26%
Average age	49	49
Years of experience	2	2

What does a medical administrator do?

A medical administrator is in charge of overseeing a medical facility's daily operations, ensuring the efficiency of all services and processes. Among their responsibilities include setting goals and guidelines, studying the feedback of different parties, gathering and analyzing data to identify areas needing improvement, planning and organizing new services and projects, managing the medical staff, and developing strategies to optimize operations. They may also develop training programs for new and current employees, coordinating with experts in the medical field. Furthermore, as a medical administrator, it is essential to lead the workforce while implementing the hospital's policies and regulations.

What does a medical clerk do?

A medical clerk works in the administrative area of a medical facility or hospital. The medical clerk collects all patient information and medical records. The clerk also does all the clinic or hospital paperwork and generates reports of all transactions that transpired in a day's work. The medical clerk also processes admission and discharge papers, medical charts, properly file and safeguard all patient records and secure them from unauthorized access. The medical clerk is expected to be highly organized, capable of handling pressure, and has good communication skills.

Medical administrator vs medical clerk salary

Medical administrators and medical clerks have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Medical Administrator	Medical Clerk
Average salary	$35,713	$32,439
Salary range	Between $28,000 And $45,000	Between $26,000 And $40,000
Highest paying City	Hillsborough, NJ	Washington, DC
Highest paying state	Connecticut	Minnesota
Best paying company	W. R. Berkley	Brinks Gilson
Best paying industry	Finance	Government

Differences between medical administrator and medical clerk education

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

	Medical Administrator	Medical Clerk
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 33%	Bachelor's Degree, 26%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	-	-

Medical administrator vs medical clerk demographics

Here are the differences between medical administrators' and medical clerks' demographics:

	Medical Administrator	Medical Clerk
Average age	49	49
Gender ratio	Male, 23.0% Female, 77.0%	Male, 15.5% Female, 84.5%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.6% Unknown, 3.8% Hispanic or Latino, 12.0% Asian, 3.8% White, 70.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%	Black or African American, 9.6% Unknown, 3.8% Hispanic or Latino, 12.0% Asian, 3.8% White, 70.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%
LGBT Percentage	9%	9%

Differences between medical administrator and medical clerk duties and responsibilities

Medical administrator example responsibilities.

Facilitate client relationships and manage surgery schedules, financial consultations, follow up care and ongoing maintenance.
Maintain a working knowledge and understanding of CPT and ICD-10 codes.
Provide patients with information explaining hospital admission policies, time of admission, and HIPPA privacy guidelines.
Receive and fulfill requests for release of information to patients and external providers following HIPPA guidelines
Attend classes to improve proficiency in billing using CPT and ICD9 codes with special modifiers.
Verify coverage for third-party insurance, Medicaid, Medicare, and out of network benefits.

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Medical clerk example responsibilities.

Evaluate all EOB's to insure accurate payment is received and when necessary will file appeals to achieve optimal payments.
Follow HIPPA patient confidentiality guidelines making patients or facility have filled proper forms to release records.
File results of laboratory tests, x-rays, EKG's, etc., in patients records.
Respond and resolve patient inquiries with compassion and patience.
Prepare request for EKG tests, eye examinations, audio and dental records.
Enter deficiencies into MediTech program.

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Medical administrator vs medical clerk skills

Common medical administrator skills

Patients, 29%
Patient Care, 10%
Medical Terminology, 7%
HIPAA, 6%
CPT, 5%
Medicaid, 5%

Common medical clerk skills

Patients, 32%
Medical Terminology, 6%
Data Entry, 6%
Phone Calls, 5%
Patient Care, 4%
Telephone Calls, 3%

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Updated January 8, 2025

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