Patient representative vs billing representative

The differences between patient representatives and billing representatives 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 representative, becoming a billing representative takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, a billing representative has an average salary of $35,002, which is higher than the $32,469 average annual salary of a patient representative.

The top three skills for a patient representative include patients, check-in and medical terminology. The most important skills for a billing representative are patients, customer service, and data entry.

Patient representative vs billing representative overview

	Patient Representative	Billing Representative
Yearly salary	$32,469	$35,002
Hourly rate	$15.61	$16.83
Growth rate	-4%	-3%
Number of jobs	137,803	95,425
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 36%	Bachelor's Degree, 30%
Average age	40	46
Years of experience	4	2

What does a patient representative do?

A patient representative is responsible for assisting the patients with their health care needs by identifying their medical concerns, assessing their medical history, and referring them to the appropriate physicians or other medical professionals for immediate treatments and further examinations. Patient representatives verify the patients' insurance information, guiding them on filling out medical forms, processing payments for medical services, and updating them for the release of medical results. A patient representative must have excellent communication and organizational skills, especially when responding to patient's inquiries and concerns timely and accurately, and performing additional administrative and clerical tasks as needed.

What does a billing representative do?

A billing representative assists with the overall operations of the organization's billing department. Billing representatives post payments timely on the database, update account statements, generate financial reports, release invoices, and resolve account discrepancies. They also perform client accounts reconciliation as needed, monitor account receivables, review overdated balance, and notify clients of payment updates to ensure accurate and timely billing. A billing representative must have strong analytical and communication skills to manage clients' accounts, as well as comprehensive knowledge on the accounting industry to explain the payment terms and policies of an organization to a client.

Patient representative vs billing representative salary

Patient representatives and billing representatives have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Patient Representative	Billing Representative
Average salary	$32,469	$35,002
Salary range	Between $26,000 And $39,000	Between $28,000 And $42,000
Highest paying City	Boston, MA	Worcester, MA
Highest paying state	Massachusetts	Massachusetts
Best paying company	University of California, Berkeley	Relevante
Best paying industry	Non Profits	Technology

Differences between patient representative and billing representative education

There are a few differences between a patient representative and a billing representative in terms of educational background:

	Patient Representative	Billing Representative
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 36%	Bachelor's Degree, 30%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	Stanford University

Patient representative vs billing representative demographics

Here are the differences between patient representatives' and billing representatives' demographics:

	Patient Representative	Billing Representative
Average age	40	46
Gender ratio	Male, 14.1% Female, 85.9%	Male, 15.7% Female, 84.3%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 12.4% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 22.2% Asian, 5.8% White, 53.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 10.4% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 19.9% Asian, 7.3% White, 57.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between patient representative and billing representative duties and responsibilities

Patient representative example responsibilities.

Code preoperative patients' surgical procedures according to surgeon's operative order by using CPT code book.
Develop physical and psychological rehabilitation programs for head trauma patients.
Assist uninsured and under-insure hospital patients in applying for government benefits including Medicaid and charity care programs.
Give patients preparations, take insurance information, and enter all necessary and relevant information into computer system.
Schedule appointments -Answered phones -provide care and compassion for patients -handle payments and maintain a proper transaction report daily
Greet patients upon arrival and pre-register visit ensuring patient does not have duplicate medical records.

Billing representative example responsibilities.

Manage software programs for MSP accounts, monthly billing and EMC file transfers to Medicare.
Accept and process healthcare claims and confidential medical records; verify patient eligibility and manage the Medicare and Medicaid billing process.
Process orders in compliance with Medicare, Medicaid and private insurance verification guidelines; confirming customer's eligibility and insurance coverage.
Verify insurance eligibility for schedule appointments, and verify cash pricing for private pay patients who request cost by CPT code.
Submit and receive Medicare and Medicaid claims electronically on a daily basis.
Utilize extensive computer skills and coding knowledge to produce and submit physical therapy and occupational therapy claims through medicaid and medicare.

Patient representative vs billing representative skills

Common patient representative skills

Patients, 28%
Check-In, 8%
Medical Terminology, 5%
Patient Care, 5%
Insurance Verification, 4%
Patient Demographics, 3%

Common billing representative skills

Patients, 18%
Customer Service, 13%
Data Entry, 6%
Medical Billing, 5%
Medicaid, 5%
Patient Accounts, 4%

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Office and Administrative Industry
Patient Representative
Patient Representative vs Billing Representative

Updated January 8, 2025

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