Medical coder vs biller

The differences between medical coders and billers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 6-12 months to become a medical coder, becoming a biller takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, a medical coder has an average salary of $51,563, which is higher than the $38,333 average annual salary of a biller.

The top three skills for a medical coder include CPC, medical terminology and ICD-10-CM. The most important skills for a biller are patients, customer service, and data entry.

Medical coder vs biller overview

	Medical Coder	Biller
Yearly salary	$51,563	$38,333
Hourly rate	$24.79	$18.43
Growth rate	11%	-3%
Number of jobs	51,316	35,740
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 37%	Associate Degree, 28%
Average age	45	46
Years of experience	12	2

What does a medical coder do?

A medical coder's role is to interpret and analyze a patient's medical record and translate particular details according to the universal medical alphanumeric code. Moreover, a medical coder is primarily responsible for ensuring that the translations are accurate, as this will play a vital factor in processing insurance and receiving treatments. Aside from accuracy, it is also crucial for a medical coder to coordinate with other hospital personnel at all times, especially when there inconsistencies in the records.

What does a biller do?

Billers are medical professionals who are responsible for translating health care services into medical claims to be submitted to insurance companies. These billers are required to obtain patient medical records and interpret them to determine the billable units and services. They must manage all aspects of the medical billing process and make necessary contacts with insurance payers or patients to ensure maximum reimbursements. Billers must also provide services that are associated with internal and external customer billing and payment processing operations.

Medical coder vs biller salary

Medical coders and billers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Medical Coder	Biller
Average salary	$51,563	$38,333
Salary range	Between $37,000 And $70,000	Between $29,000 And $49,000
Highest paying City	Trenton, NJ	Washington, DC
Highest paying state	Hawaii	Washington
Best paying company	Meta	UC Merced
Best paying industry	Health Care	Manufacturing

Differences between medical coder and biller education

There are a few differences between a medical coder and a biller in terms of educational background:

	Medical Coder	Biller
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 37%	Associate Degree, 28%
Most common major	Health Care Administration	Health Care Administration
Most common college	Stanford University	Stanford University

Medical coder vs biller demographics

Here are the differences between medical coders' and billers' demographics:

	Medical Coder	Biller
Average age	45	46
Gender ratio	Male, 13.2% Female, 86.8%	Male, 11.6% Female, 88.4%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.2% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 16.2% Asian, 9.0% White, 60.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.3%	Black or African American, 9.4% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 21.8% Asian, 6.8% White, 56.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%
LGBT Percentage	9%	7%

Differences between medical coder and biller duties and responsibilities

Medical coder example responsibilities.

Manage all EDI relate communication with trading partners and assist to produce all operational documents for all end users.
Manage all aspects of AR including writing letters for medical necessity, claim denials, bundling issues and charge capture.
Manage health records while applying ICD-10 coding to update and process insurance claims for time and accuracy to various insurance companies.
Manage the outsourced transcription company.
Create documentation education classes to general surgery residents, increasing the leveling of reporting which lead to increase revenues.
Adhere to regulations with CPT-4, ICD-9-CM and HCPCS coding with medical terminology and effort meet all audit requirements.

Biller example responsibilities.

Manage payer requirements, regulatory compliance requirements, HIPAA privacy and security requirements, medical terminology and general revenue cycle procedures.
Ensure all ICD-9 and CPT coding are correct and forward any errors to the appropriate departments to correct.
Prepare forms for CPT-4 and ICD-9 coding.
Acquire a working knowledge of revenue codes and HCPCS codes.
Answer phones, review, verifying insurance and ICD-9 coding of service reports.
Maintain confidentiality of all pertinent client information in compliance with HIPAA laws and regulations.

Medical coder vs biller skills

Common medical coder skills

CPC, 11%
Medical Terminology, 8%
ICD-10-CM, 7%
AHIMA, 7%
Patients, 7%
Clinical Documentation, 5%

Common biller skills

Patients, 18%
Customer Service, 10%
Data Entry, 6%
CPT, 5%
Medicaid, 4%
Patient Accounts, 4%

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Medical Coder
Medical Coder vs Biller

Updated January 8, 2025

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