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What is a medical insurance coder and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025
3 min read
There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a medical insurance coder. For example, did you know that they make an average of $15.73 an hour? That's $32,709 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow -3% and produce -38,500 job opportunities across the U.S.
ScoreMedical Insurance CoderUS Average
Salary
2.6

Avg. Salary $32,709

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level
6.2

Growth rate -3%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity
6.4
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.84%

Asian 6.79%

Black or African American 12.14%

Hispanic or Latino 18.08%

Unknown 4.26%

White 57.89%

Gender

female 89.23%

male 10.77%

Age - 47
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 47
Stress level
6.2

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity level
7.5

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance
8.6

Work life balance is excellent

6.4 - fair

Medical insurance coder career paths

Key steps to become a medical insurance coder

  1. Explore medical insurance coder education requirements

    Most common medical insurance coder degrees

    Associate

    32.7 %

    High School Diploma

    19.8 %

    Bachelor's

    17.8 %
  2. Start to develop specific medical insurance coder skills

    SkillsPercentages
    Patients19.48%
    Insurance Verification10.64%
    Medicaid6.27%
    Patient Accounts5.16%
    Customer Service5.10%
  3. Complete relevant medical insurance coder training and internships

    Accountants spend an average of 1-3 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New medical insurance coders learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a medical insurance coder based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real medical insurance coder resumes.
  4. Research medical insurance coder duties and responsibilities

    • Assign to PacifiCare of Washington a medical insurance manage care plan (HMO).
    • Manage chart completion (ICD-9-CM and CPT coding/abstracting), chart assembly and analysis, patient admission and patient information privacy/security.
    • Maintain and update ICD-9, CPT-4 & HCPCS coding for practice.
    • Bill major insurance carriers and Medicaid using ICD-9 and CPT codes.
  5. Prepare your medical insurance coder resume

    When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your medical insurance coder resume.

    You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a medical insurance coder resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

    Choose from 10+ customizable medical insurance coder resume templates

    Build a professional medical insurance coder resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your medical insurance coder resume.
    Medical Insurance Coder Resume
    Medical Insurance Coder Resume
    Medical Insurance Coder Resume
    Medical Insurance Coder Resume
    Medical Insurance Coder Resume
    Medical Insurance Coder Resume
    Medical Insurance Coder Resume
    Medical Insurance Coder Resume
    Medical Insurance Coder Resume
  6. Apply for medical insurance coder jobs

    Now it's time to start searching for a medical insurance coder job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

    1. Browse job boards for relevant postings
    2. Consult your professional network
    3. Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
    4. Watch out for job scams

How did you land your first medical insurance coder job

Zippi

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Average medical insurance coder salary

The average medical insurance coder salary in the United States is $32,709 per year or $16 per hour. Medical insurance coder salaries range between $27,000 and $38,000 per year.

Average medical insurance coder salary
$32,709 Yearly
$15.73 hourly

What am I worth?

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How do medical insurance coders rate their job?

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Medical insurance coder reviews

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A zippia user wrote a review on Nov 2019
Pros

Keeping up with different medical coding


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Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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