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How to hire a medical biller coder

Medical biller coder hiring summary. Here are some key points about hiring medical biller coders in the United States:

  • The median cost to hire a medical biller coder is $1,633.
  • It takes between 36 and 42 days to fill the average role in the US.
  • HR departments typically allocate 15% of their budget towards recruitment efforts.
  • Small businesses spend $1,105 per medical biller coder on training each year, while large companies spend $658.
  • It takes approximately 12 weeks for a new employee to reach full productivity levels.
  • There are a total of 134,966 medical biller coders in the US, and there are currently 54,861 job openings in this field.
  • Chicago, IL, has the highest demand for medical biller coders, with 5 job openings.

How to hire a medical biller coder, step by step

To hire a medical biller coder, you need to identify the specific skills and experience you want in a candidate, allocate a budget for the position, and advertise the job opening to attract potential candidates. To hire a medical biller coder, you should follow these steps:

Here's a step-by-step medical biller coder hiring guide:

  • Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
  • Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
  • Step 3: Make a budget
  • Step 4: Write a medical biller coder job description
  • Step 5: Post your job
  • Step 6: Interview candidates
  • Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new medical biller coder
  • Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a medical biller coder do?

A medical biller coder is responsible for handling the billing processes and insurance within a hospital, clinic, or similar facility. They must gather patient information and records to analyze and translate them into codes according to the insurance and medical guidelines. Moreover, it is crucial to verify all patient forms and ensure their accuracy as it will serve as a basis on essential documents and medical record-keeping. There may also be instances where a medical biller coder must devise payment plans for patients, communicate with families and guardians, and coordinate with physicians.

Learn more about the specifics of what a medical biller coder does
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  1. Identify your hiring needs

    The medical biller coder hiring process starts by determining what type of worker you actually need. Certain roles might require a full-time employee, whereas part-time workers or contractors can do others.

    Determine employee vs contractor status
    Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

    You should also consider the ideal background you'd like them a medical biller coder to have before you start to hire. For example, what industry or field would you like them to have experience in, what level of seniority or education does the job require, and how much it'll cost to hire a medical biller coder that fits the bill.

    This list shows salaries for various types of medical biller coders.

    Type of Medical Biller CoderDescriptionHourly rate
    Medical Biller CoderMedical records and health information technicians, commonly referred to as health information technicians, organize and manage health information data. They ensure its quality, accuracy, accessibility, and security in both paper and electronic systems... Show more$14-23
    Health Information TechnicianA 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... Show more$12-21
    Records ManagerThe records manager is an important position that handles the creation, organization, and disposal of records. They are also responsible for establishing systems for their management and the maintenance, verification, and evaluation of extant systems... Show more$15-32
  2. Create an ideal candidate profile

    Common skills:
    • Patients
    • Medical Billing
    • ICD-10
    • Customer Service
    • CPT-4
    • HCPCS
    • Medical Terminology
    • Data Entry
    • Medicare
    • Medicaid
    • EOB
    • Appeals
    • Patient Accounts
    • Physical Therapy
    Check all skills
    Responsibilities:
    • Manage chart completion (ICD-9-CM and CPT coding), chart assembly and analysis and patient information privacy/security.
    • Use EMR software to manage patient records and files reinforce and uphold patient confidentiality as required by HIPAA and clinic.
    • Manage chart completion (ICD-9-CM and CPT coding/abstracting), chart assembly and analysis, patient admission and patient information privacy/security.
    • Bill insurance claims using HCFA 1500 and UB-92 form.
    • Review coding, verify the diagnosis codes (ICD-9) and procedure codes (CPT) are congruent and clinically appropriate.
    • Have experience in all commercial insurances and government insurances including Medicare and Medicaid.
    More medical biller coder duties
  3. Make a budget

    Including a salary range in your medical biller coder job description helps attract top candidates to the position. A medical biller coder salary can be affected by several factors, such as geography, experience, seniority, certifications, and the prestige of the hiring company.

    For example, the average salary for a medical biller coder in Indiana may be lower than in California, and an entry-level medical biller coder usually earns less than a senior-level medical biller coder. Additionally, a medical biller coder with certifications may command a higher salary, and working for a well-known company or start-up may also impact an employee's pay.

    Average medical biller coder salary

    $38,756yearly

    $18.63 hourly rate

    Entry-level medical biller coder salary
    $30,000 yearly salary
    Updated December 5, 2025

    Average medical biller coder salary by state

    RankStateAvg. salaryHourly rate
    1California$47,053$23
    2New Jersey$46,038$22
    3Alaska$43,830$21
    4Massachusetts$43,743$21
    5Oregon$42,810$21
    6North Carolina$39,915$19
    7Connecticut$39,707$19
    8New York$39,377$19
    9Pennsylvania$39,119$19
    10Illinois$38,312$18
    11Ohio$38,141$18
    12Colorado$37,883$18
    13Arizona$37,537$18
    14Minnesota$36,391$18
    15Virginia$35,850$17
    16Michigan$35,737$17
    17Georgia$35,008$17
    18Nebraska$34,709$17
    19Florida$34,627$17
    20Iowa$34,410$17

    Average medical biller coder salary by company

    RankCompanyAverage salaryHourly rateJob openings
    1University of California-Berkeley$49,044$23.58
    2Mount Sinai Health System$44,313$21.309
    3Leggett & Platt$43,347$20.84
    4Encompass Health$39,622$19.0514
    5Addison Group$39,252$18.8713
    6Tempus$39,069$18.78
    7Aledade$38,912$18.71
    8IPS-Integrated Project Services$38,780$18.64
    9Access International, Inc.$38,780$18.64
    10Sinai Chicago$38,575$18.55
    11Randstad North America, Inc.$38,569$18.543
    12Henry J. Austin Health Center$38,522$18.521
    13University of Central Florida$38,327$18.43
    14Robert Half$38,294$18.4181
    15Elite Ambulance$38,179$18.361
    16Covenant Community Care$38,081$18.311
    17Avery Partners$38,029$18.281
    18University of Virginia$37,930$18.243
    19LifePoint Health$37,697$18.1215
    20Keystone Health$37,622$18.09
  4. Writing a medical biller coder job description

    A good medical biller coder job description should include a few things:

    • Summary of the role
    • List of responsibilities
    • Required skills and experience

    Including a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager is also appreciated by candidates. Here's an example of a medical biller coder job description:

    Medical biller coder job description example

    • Assist with conversion to new Electronic Medical Record
    • Assist clinicians particularly Medical Staff with documenting Evaluation and Management services and Assessments - notifying them if modifications need to be made and following through to ensure all services are documented properly.
    • Ability to review and understand all billing requirements for all payers especially Medicare and Medicaid.
    • Utilize Microsoft Office applications, databases (particularly Excel and Word) to complete Missing Day Sheet/Unprocessed Events tracking report each week in a timely basis
    • Assist with credentialing licensed staff with insurance companies and re-credentialing agency providers numbers with all associated entities
    • Create and submit both electronic and paper claims as assigned to all payers.
    • Maintain, using Microsoft Office applications (particularly Excel and Word), a variety of analyses and/or summaries of information documenting the NKHS's General Ledger reporting
    • Speaking with patients regarding their accounts.
    • Assisting with IDDS Waiver Billing/Adjustments and Reconciliation
    • Assisting with entry of client financials, following-up on outstanding claims, calling insurance companies and writing letters.
    • Prepare, analyze, and work with members of NKHS's billing staff to follow-up on outstanding balances as identified in the monthly detailed A/R aging report
    • Develop and maintain computerized spreadsheets use in gathering data to support effective decision-making.
    • Complete other business office related assignments as directed by supervisor or his/her designee.
    • A/R follow-up/collection calls on any receivable over 150 days

    $18.75 per hour plus, depending upon experience

    Full time position with exceptional benefits package including low-cost medical and dental, short-/long-term disability coverages, 403(b) retirement plan, life insurance, AFLAC, employee assistance program, generous paid time off, long-term care plan, and additional optional benefits.

  5. Post your job

    There are various strategies that you can use to find the right medical biller coder for your business:

    • Consider promoting from within or recruiting from your existing workforce.
    • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
    • Attend job fairs at local colleges to find candidates who meet your education requirements.
    • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to reach potential job candidates.
    Post your job online:
    • Post your medical biller coder job on Zippia to find and attract quality medical biller coder candidates.
    • Use niche websites such as healthcarejobsite, health jobs nationwide, hospitalcareers, medreps.com.
    • Post a job on free websites.
  6. Interview candidates

    Recruiting medical biller coders requires you to bring your A-game to the interview process. The first interview should introduce the company and the role to the candidate as much as they present their background experience and reasons for applying for the job. During later interviews, you can go into more detail about the technical details of the job and ask behavioral questions to gauge how they'd fit into your current company culture.

    It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents. You can move on to the technical interview if a candidate is good enough for the next step.

    The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

  7. Send a job offer and onboard your new medical biller coder

    Once you have selected a candidate for the medical biller coder position, it is time to create an offer letter. In addition to salary, the offer letter should include details about benefits and perks that are available to the employee. Ensuring your offer is competitive is vital, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and it is important to be open to discussion and reach a mutually beneficial agreement. After the offer has been accepted, it is a good idea to formalize the agreement with a contract.

    It's also good etiquette to follow up with applicants who don't get the job by sending them an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

    To prepare for the new medical biller coder first day, you should share an onboarding schedule with them that covers their first period on the job. You should also quickly complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Finally, Human Resources must ensure a new employee file is created for internal record keeping.

  8. Go through the hiring process checklist

    • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
    • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
    • Define job responsibilities and requirements
    • Establish budget and timeline
    • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
    • Write job description
    • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
    • Promote the job internally
    • Process applications through applicant tracking system
    • Review resumes and cover letters
    • Shortlist candidates for screening
    • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
    • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
    • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
    • Conduct background checks on top candidates
    • Check references of top candidates
    • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
    • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
    • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
    • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
    • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
    • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)
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How much does it cost to hire a medical biller coder?

Hiring a medical biller coder comes with both the one-time cost per hire and ongoing costs. The cost of recruiting medical biller coders involves promoting the job and spending time conducting interviews. Ongoing costs include employee salary, training, benefits, insurance, and equipment. It is essential to consider the cost of medical biller coder recruiting as well the ongoing costs of maintaining the new employee.

The median annual salary for medical biller coders is $38,756 in the US. However, the cost of medical biller coder hiring can vary a lot depending on location. Additionally, hiring a medical biller coder for contract work or on a per-project basis typically costs between $14 and $23 an hour.

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