Medicare billing specialist vs medical billing clerk

The differences between medicare billing specialists and medical billing clerks can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a medicare billing specialist and a medical billing clerk. Additionally, a medicare billing specialist has an average salary of $36,773, which is higher than the $33,566 average annual salary of a medical billing clerk.

The top three skills for a medicare billing specialist include patients, patient accounts and data entry. The most important skills for a medical billing clerk are patients, medical billing, and healthcare.

Medicare billing specialist vs medical billing clerk overview

	Medicare Billing Specialist	Medical Billing Clerk
Yearly salary	$36,773	$33,566
Hourly rate	$17.68	$16.14
Growth rate	-3%	-3%
Number of jobs	54,593	164,870
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 34%	Associate Degree, 30%
Average age	46	46
Years of experience	2	2

Medicare billing specialist vs medical billing clerk salary

Medicare billing specialists and medical billing clerks have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Medicare Billing Specialist	Medical Billing Clerk
Average salary	$36,773	$33,566
Salary range	Between $30,000 And $44,000	Between $27,000 And $40,000
Highest paying City	-	San Leandro, CA
Highest paying state	-	Washington
Best paying company	-	iCare
Best paying industry	-	Health Care

Differences between medicare billing specialist and medical billing clerk education

There are a few differences between a medicare billing specialist and a medical billing clerk in terms of educational background:

	Medicare Billing Specialist	Medical Billing Clerk
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 34%	Associate Degree, 30%
Most common major	Business	Health Care Administration
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	Stanford University

Medicare billing specialist vs medical billing clerk demographics

Here are the differences between medicare billing specialists' and medical billing clerks' demographics:

	Medicare Billing Specialist	Medical Billing Clerk
Average age	46	46
Gender ratio	Male, 9.3% Female, 90.7%	Male, 11.3% Female, 88.7%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 10.3% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 16.5% Asian, 7.9% White, 59.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0%	Black or African American, 10.4% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 21.9% Asian, 6.8% White, 55.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between medicare billing specialist and medical billing clerk duties and responsibilities

Medicare billing specialist example responsibilities.

Accept and process healthcare claims and confidential medical records; verify patient eligibility and manage the Medicare and Medicaid billing process.
Resolve billing issues, ensure accuracy re: CPT, HCPCS, ICD-9 codes as applicable.
Expand knowledge with insurance EOB & Tennessee Medicare (handle denials and some occurring problems )
Call Medicare to re-open claims due to date, CPT, units, or other changes.
Used CPT-4 coders/Modifiers, ICD-9 codes, HCPCS codes when applicable for the resolution of claim payments.
Comply with all HIPPA laws.

Medical billing clerk example responsibilities.

Accept and process healthcare claims and confidential medical records; verify patient eligibility and manage the Medicare and Medicaid billing process.
Interact with patients as part of the quality assurance process (follow-up, EHR confirmation, billing confirmation).
Reconcile insurance and patient payments while researching and resolving incorrect payments, EOB rejections, and assort issues with outstanding accounts.
Utilize medical terminology and follow HIPAA guidelines.
Bill Magellan through Nextgen system.
Double checked CMS-1500 form before posting it out to the insurance companies.

Medicare billing specialist vs medical billing clerk skills

Common medicare billing specialist skills

Patients, 20%
Patient Accounts, 6%
Data Entry, 5%
Medicare, 5%
Medicaid, 5%
CPT, 5%

Common medical billing clerk skills

Patients, 18%
Medical Billing, 10%
Healthcare, 7%
Data Entry, 7%
Customer Service, 6%
Medicaid, 5%

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Medicare Billing Specialist
Medicare Billing Specialist vs Medical Billing Clerk

Updated January 8, 2025

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