Patient accounts clerk vs admissions clerk

The differences between patient accounts clerks and admissions clerks can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become a patient accounts clerk, becoming an admissions clerk takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, an admissions clerk has an average salary of $31,980, which is higher than the $31,951 average annual salary of a patient accounts clerk.

The top three skills for a patient accounts clerk include patients, medical terminology and patient demographics. The most important skills for an admissions clerk are patients, data entry, and customer service.

Patient accounts clerk vs admissions clerk overview

	Patient Accounts Clerk	Admissions Clerk
Yearly salary	$31,951	$31,980
Hourly rate	$15.36	$15.38
Growth rate	-4%	-5%
Number of jobs	161,780	123,555
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 28%	Bachelor's Degree, 29%
Average age	40	47
Years of experience	4	2

What does a patient accounts clerk do?

A Patient Accounts Clerk is primarily in charge of computing, billing, and collecting payments in hospitals, clinics, and other medical facilities. They may assist patients or families by answering inquiries, explaining payment procedures, and processing requests. Aside from serving as the point of contact regarding payment concerns, a patient accounts clerk is also responsible for liaising with health care providers and insurance companies, gathering and reviewing data for submissions, preparing and processing the necessary documents, and maintaining accurate records.

What does an admissions clerk do?

An admissions clerk caters to all incoming customers, applicants, or patients in a facility. Their primary job is to handle the personal data of those customers, applicants, or patients. They are responsible for communicating this data to their organization's faculty and management, as well as ensuring data security. On a secondary basis, an admissions clerk is responsible for addressing the needs or inquiries of the customers, applicants, or patients they serve. For this position, it is necessary to have strong customer service skills, strong communication skills, and strong problem-solving abilities.

Patient accounts clerk vs admissions clerk salary

Patient accounts clerks and admissions clerks have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Patient Accounts Clerk	Admissions Clerk
Average salary	$31,951	$31,980
Salary range	Between $26,000 And $38,000	Between $24,000 And $41,000
Highest paying City	-	-
Highest paying state	-	-
Best paying company	-	-
Best paying industry	-	-

Differences between patient accounts clerk and admissions clerk education

There are a few differences between a patient accounts clerk and an admissions clerk in terms of educational background:

	Patient Accounts Clerk	Admissions Clerk
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 28%	Bachelor's Degree, 29%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Patient accounts clerk vs admissions clerk demographics

Here are the differences between patient accounts clerks' and admissions clerks' demographics:

	Patient Accounts Clerk	Admissions Clerk
Average age	40	47
Gender ratio	Male, 13.9% Female, 86.1%	Male, 12.7% Female, 87.3%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 12.5% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 20.0% Asian, 6.0% White, 55.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 12.7% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 19.3% Asian, 7.0% White, 55.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%
LGBT Percentage	7%	6%

Differences between patient accounts clerk and admissions clerk duties and responsibilities

Patient accounts clerk example responsibilities.

Develop and execute policies and procedures that effectively manage the information needs of the organization and always following HIPAA guidelines.
Research ICD-9 and CPT codes on reject claims.
Adhere to all company policies, processes and procedures in compliance with HIPPA.
Practice HIPAA compliant rules and regulations while updating the patient information and entering the charges.
Verify charges on claims and assign valid ICD-9 and CPT codes to ensure appropriate reimbursement.
Research, appeal and resolve claims, rejections and denials with Medicare, Medicaid and private insurances.

Admissions clerk example responsibilities.

Manage an adjoining veterinary supply shop that sell medications, animal food and pet equipment.
Register patients via ambulances and lobby registration.
Utilize ICD-9 and CPT-4 coding in admitting patients and pre-certifications/authorizations for admissions and procedures.
Interview incoming patients or representatives and enter information require for admission and emergency department registration into the computer.
Interpret institutes regulations and charges to patients and/or family members, obtaining necessary information and signatures where necessary.
Maintain communications with physicians' offices and unit secretaries/nursing coordinator to ensure bed placement of direct admissions and in-patient surgery candidates.

Patient accounts clerk vs admissions clerk skills

Common patient accounts clerk skills

Patients, 24%
Medical Terminology, 14%
Patient Demographics, 9%
Customer Service, 8%
Data Entry, 7%
PBX, 4%

Common admissions clerk skills

Patients, 42%
Data Entry, 7%
Customer Service, 4%
Insurance Forms, 3%
Computer System, 3%
Patient Demographics, 3%

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Patient Accounts Clerk
Patient Accounts Clerk vs Admissions Clerk

Updated January 8, 2025

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