Medical billing, receptionist vs bill collector

The differences between medical billings, receptionist and bill collectors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a medical billing, receptionist, becoming a bill collector takes usually requires 6-12 months. Additionally, a bill collector has an average salary of $35,585, which is higher than the $34,622 average annual salary of a medical billing, receptionist.

The top three skills for a medical billing, receptionist include patients, medical billing and data entry. The most important skills for a bill collector are patients, customer service, and medicaid.

Medical billing, receptionist vs bill collector overview

	Medical Billing, Receptionist	Bill Collector
Yearly salary	$34,622	$35,585
Hourly rate	$16.65	$17.11
Growth rate	-3%	-8%
Number of jobs	115,714	23,746
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 26%	High School Diploma, 27%
Average age	46	46
Years of experience	2	12

What does a medical billing, receptionist do?

A medical billing receptionist serves as the main point of contact in a hospital. Their responsibilities revolve around greeting patients and attending to their needs, gathering and maintaining records, and checking-in patients. They also have administrative support tasks such as answering calls and responding to inquiries, arranging appointments and schedules, producing reports, keeping documentation, and handling billing processes, including insurance. Moreover, a medical billing receptionist must be alert and proactive as the conditions in a hospital can be very unpredictable.

What does a bill collector do?

A bill collector is responsible for reaching out to the customers to collect overdue payments, negotiate repayment plans, and update account information upon settling of payments. Bill collectors monitor the contact details of the customer, utilizing locator tools and software as required by the organization, and review contract terms to decide on credit advice or escalate the issue to a higher tier. A bill collector must have excellent communication and customer service skills, especially in explaining the customer's case and perform debt collection duties efficiently.

Medical billing, receptionist vs bill collector salary

Medical billings, receptionist and bill collectors have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Medical Billing, Receptionist	Bill Collector
Average salary	$34,622	$35,585
Salary range	Between $28,000 And $41,000	Between $30,000 And $40,000
Highest paying City	Boston, MA	Pittsfield, MA
Highest paying state	Massachusetts	Virginia
Best paying company	University of California, Berkeley	Retina Group Of Washington
Best paying industry	Technology	Finance

Differences between medical billing, receptionist and bill collector education

There are a few differences between a medical billing, receptionist and a bill collector in terms of educational background:

	Medical Billing, Receptionist	Bill Collector
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 26%	High School Diploma, 27%
Most common major	Health Care Administration	Business
Most common college	Stanford University	-

Medical billing, receptionist vs bill collector demographics

Here are the differences between medical billings, receptionist' and bill collectors' demographics:

	Medical Billing, Receptionist	Bill Collector
Average age	46	46
Gender ratio	Male, 9.5% Female, 90.5%	Male, 20.0% Female, 80.0%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.9% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 21.9% Asian, 6.8% White, 56.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%	Black or African American, 11.8% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 24.0% Asian, 3.5% White, 56.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	7%	8%

Differences between medical billing, receptionist and bill collector duties and responsibilities

Medical billing, receptionist example responsibilities.

Accept and process healthcare claims and confidential medical records; verify patient eligibility and manage the Medicare and Medicaid billing process.
Revise CPT codes and ICD-10 codes before submitting to insurance for chiropractic services and durable medical equipment.
Review and research ICD-9 and CPT codes that are denied by payers, and contact physician offices to assist with correction.
Submit secondary insurance claims with primary insurance EOB.
Facilitate medical billing and coding by interfacing with insurance companies and patients to ensure proper billing procedures.
Discuss physicians' choice of E/M level when in question.

Bill collector example responsibilities.

Prevent impeding loss and increasing profitability through negotiation and enforcement of schedule collection campaigns, consistently achieving high success standards.
Follow HIPPA and FDCPA guidelines to ensure legal collection practices are utilized.
Bill and collect all skil Medicare, and other insurance claims which include HMO claims denials.
Provide patients with information and resources essential to their financial needs including payment arrangements and account reminders.
Take payments by ACH and debit cards.
Collect A/R payments from medical insurance companies and customers.

Medical billing, receptionist vs bill collector skills

Common medical billing, receptionist skills

Patients, 21%
Medical Billing, 7%
Data Entry, 5%
Customer Service, 5%
CPT, 4%
Medicaid, 4%

Common bill collector skills

Patients, 19%
Customer Service, 7%
Medicaid, 6%
Medical Billing, 4%
Patient Accounts, 4%
Appeals, 4%

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Medical Billing, Receptionist
Medical Billing, Receptionist vs Bill Collector

Updated January 8, 2025

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