Post job

Medical auditor vs health information technician

The differences between medical auditors and health information technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 6-12 months to become both a medical auditor and a health information technician. Additionally, a medical auditor has an average salary of $53,683, which is higher than the $34,604 average annual salary of a health information technician.

The top three skills for a medical auditor include ICD-10, HCPCS and HIPAA. The most important skills for a health information technician are patients, medical terminology, and customer service.

Medical auditor vs health information technician overview

Medical AuditorHealth Information Technician
Yearly salary$53,683$34,604
Hourly rate$25.81$16.64
Growth rate11%11%
Number of jobs68,870120,786
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 35%Associate Degree, 41%
Average age4545
Years of experience1212

What does a medical auditor do?

Medical auditors are in charge of precise documentation, unaccountable operations, and determining areas for enhancement for any healthcare organization. Their responsibilities include conducting an internal and external assessment of coding accuracy, policies, and strategies to make sure a systematic and feasible delivery of care. Also, they determine any erroneous or misplaced documentation that could lead to negative consequences for their equipment. Additionally, they educate their medical on correct documenting protocols and give updates with new codings, insurance, and government guidelines.

What does a health information technician do?

A health information technician is primarily responsible for managing and handling patient information, ensuring accuracy and confidentiality. They coordinate with various health care workers to gather patient data, laboratory results, test findings, and medical histories, encoding them in clinical databases in a timely and efficient manner. They must analyze every information to detect any inconsistencies, performing corrective measures right away. Furthermore, as a health information technician, it is essential to utilize particular software and systems when processing information, all while adhering to the hospital's policies and regulations.

Medical auditor vs health information technician salary

Medical auditors and health information technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

Medical AuditorHealth Information Technician
Average salary$53,683$34,604
Salary rangeBetween $35,000 And $81,000Between $26,000 And $45,000
Highest paying CityFremont, CAFairbanks, AK
Highest paying stateMarylandAlaska
Best paying companyTÜV SÜD AmericaStifel Financial
Best paying industryInsuranceGovernment

Differences between medical auditor and health information technician education

There are a few differences between a medical auditor and a health information technician in terms of educational background:

Medical AuditorHealth Information Technician
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 35%Associate Degree, 41%
Most common majorHealth Care AdministrationHealth Care Administration
Most common collegeUniversity of PennsylvaniaUniversity of Southern California

Medical auditor vs health information technician demographics

Here are the differences between medical auditors' and health information technicians' demographics:

Medical AuditorHealth Information Technician
Average age4545
Gender ratioMale, 18.6% Female, 81.4%Male, 16.5% Female, 83.5%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 8.4% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 17.3% Asian, 8.7% White, 60.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.3%Black or African American, 9.2% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 17.2% Asian, 8.6% White, 59.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.3%
LGBT Percentage9%9%

Differences between medical auditor and health information technician duties and responsibilities

Medical auditor example responsibilities.

  • Review confidential and substantial health documentation and make sound, evidence-base decisions concerning compliance to HIPPA and other manage care policies.
  • Handle and interpret medical documentation such as UB04 claim forms and EOB's on a daily basis.
  • Review all EOB's to ensure claim paid per contract and submit appeals for claims underpay or deny payment in error.
  • Review medical records to determine if clinical documentation support coding and DRG assignments.
  • Advance knowledge - CMS and provider contract rules.
  • Process HCFA and UB claims in a production environment.
  • Show more

Health information technician example responsibilities.

  • Maximize ROI by effectively managing the microfiche process.
  • Assist patients and staff on filling out ROI's, and explain what exactly are being release or obtain.
  • Perform analysis and assembly of emergency room and surgery records and release records according to HIPAA regulations and confidentially.
  • Input data into a windows base in-house system.
  • Scan medical records in the EHR using the NEXTGEN software.
  • Attend advanced SQL coding workshops to optimize and refine database infrastructure.
  • Show more

Medical auditor vs health information technician skills

Common medical auditor skills
  • ICD-10, 12%
  • HCPCS, 10%
  • HIPAA, 9%
  • Patients, 8%
  • Surgery, 6%
  • Audit Findings, 5%
Common health information technician skills
  • Patients, 20%
  • Medical Terminology, 13%
  • Customer Service, 9%
  • HIPAA, 9%
  • Patient Care, 7%
  • Data Entry, 5%

Browse healthcare practitioner and technical jobs