Patient account coordinator vs referral coordinator

The differences between patient account coordinators and referral coordinators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 6-12 months to become a patient account coordinator, becoming a referral coordinator takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, a patient account coordinator has an average salary of $35,695, which is higher than the $35,179 average annual salary of a referral coordinator.

The top three skills for a patient account coordinator include patients, patient accounts and credit balances. The most important skills for a referral coordinator are patients, customer service, and medical terminology.

Patient account coordinator vs referral coordinator overview

	Patient Account Coordinator	Referral Coordinator
Yearly salary	$35,695	$35,179
Hourly rate	$17.16	$16.91
Growth rate	-8%	-8%
Number of jobs	148,258	65,934
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 34%	Bachelor's Degree, 31%
Average age	46	49
Years of experience	12	2

What does a patient account coordinator do?

A patient account coordinator ensures that the medical records of a patient are consolidated and updated with necessary and accurate information for ease of access by medical staff and other departments within a medical facility. You will capture and record patient information for easy access, handle patient billing and related inquiries, and help patients fill out the required paperwork. Patient account coordinators schedule and follow up patient appointments, set up and manage patient accounts and information therein, and coordinate and follow up on insurance benefits.

What does a referral coordinator do?

A referral coordinator works with insurance companies and care providers to share essential patient information and assists primarily in scheduling appointments and managing health insurance issues. As a referral coordinator, you will work directly with the patient, patient families, or even social workers, depending on the job and patient needs. Other job responsibilities include general administrative or clerical tasks such as setting up appointments for new and existing patients, verifying insurance information before appointments, and answering phone calls.

Patient account coordinator vs referral coordinator salary

Patient account coordinators and referral coordinators have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Patient Account Coordinator	Referral Coordinator
Average salary	$35,695	$35,179
Salary range	Between $30,000 And $41,000	Between $27,000 And $44,000
Highest paying City	-	Portland, ME
Highest paying state	-	Maine
Best paying company	-	Horizon Laser Vision
Best paying industry	-	Health Care

Differences between patient account coordinator and referral coordinator education

There are a few differences between a patient account coordinator and a referral coordinator in terms of educational background:

	Patient Account Coordinator	Referral Coordinator
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 34%	Bachelor's Degree, 31%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	-	-

Patient account coordinator vs referral coordinator demographics

Here are the differences between patient account coordinators' and referral coordinators' demographics:

	Patient Account Coordinator	Referral Coordinator
Average age	46	49
Gender ratio	Male, 12.0% Female, 88.0%	Male, 10.2% Female, 89.8%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 12.7% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 19.1% Asian, 4.0% White, 59.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%	Black or African American, 9.6% Unknown, 3.8% Hispanic or Latino, 12.0% Asian, 3.8% White, 70.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%
LGBT Percentage	8%	9%

Differences between patient account coordinator and referral coordinator duties and responsibilities

Patient account coordinator example responsibilities.

Accept and process healthcare claims and confidential medical records; verify patient eligibility and manage the Medicare and Medicaid billing process.
Perform appropriate follow-up for missing data elements such as CPT, HCPCS, ICD-9 codes and modifiers.
Be able to work with the current CPT, ICD-9 books, CPC certification are required for this position
Provide quality customer service, maintain confidentiality, problem solving, and accuracy while complying with all HIPAA regulations.
Provide adequate documentation to insurance carriers for appeals and reconsideration of soft and technical denials.
See that records are store securely and handle in compliance with HIPAA privacy and security regulations

Referral coordinator example responsibilities.

Establish rapport with all PCP offices, hospital personnel, and manage care representatives.
Ensure CPT and ICD-9 coding are accurate and complete according to AMA's guidelines and for third party intermediaries.
Contact medical insurance companies and provide ICD-9 diagnosis and CPT procedure codes for patient's illness, condition or injury.
Apply ICD-9 and CPT-4 codes to complete referral requests online or via fax.
Conduct the entire office's EHR process and create a system to track old and new patient's records.
Incorporate core organizational values of quality, respect, integrity, partnership, and compassion in all activities and decisions.

Patient account coordinator vs referral coordinator skills

Common patient account coordinator skills

Patients, 20%
Patient Accounts, 10%
Credit Balances, 9%
Appeals, 7%
Medical Billing, 4%
Data Entry, 3%

Common referral coordinator skills

Patients, 30%
Customer Service, 12%
Medical Terminology, 7%
Patient Care, 4%
Data Entry, 4%
EMR, 3%

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Office and Administrative Industry
Patient Account Coordinator
Patient Account Coordinator vs Referral Coordinator

Updated January 8, 2025

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