Whether you are in the process of choosing your first profession or are looking to change paths, you should seriously consider pursuing a career in medical billing and coding. Medical coding is a sought after skill in the always thriving health care industry. It offers opportunities for employment in hospitals or medical centers as well as the possibility of self-employment as a freelancer who works in-office or from home. The following are seven reasons you should consider a career in medical billing and coding:
1. Work in a Profession that is in Demand
Medical Coding and Billing is a high demand occupation, and will likely remain that way.
While new software greatly assists the work of medical coding, there is no substitute for a human being who can input information, check for possible errors and inconsistencies, and keep information organized in a way that other human beings can follow.
2. Take Advantage of a Range of Education and Training Options
While most jobs in the health care industry require years of specialized training, you can prepare yourself for a career as a medical coder in as little as three months. With the expansion of for-profit and online technical colleges, there are more options than ever for becoming a medical coder. Coursework and training can be done online, in a physical classroom, or combination of both. This means you can be trained and accredited as a medical coder on your own schedule without quitting your current job until you are ready.
3. Serve an Important Role in the Health Care Industry
Working in medical billing is a way to contribute to the health care field without years of training or being married to the job. You can be proud that you are serving in an industry that helps countless people every day.
[gravityform id=9 title=false description=false ajax=true]
4. Never Stop Learning
The complex standards and best practices surrounding insurance billing, Medicare, and Medicaid are constantly changing. While often routine, there are enough regular changes to coding requirements to keep you active and alert in your job. The ability to keep learning and adapting without being overwhelmed by challenges is important to long-term job satisfaction and is something you will find in the medical coding profession.
5. Keep a Steady and Predictable Work Schedule
The majority or medical coders work in hospitals and medical centers or for contractors that provide support services for hospitals. This offers the advantage of steady work on a predictable schedule, often with good benefits. While many people in the health care industry work long and often unpredictable hours, a medical coder can expect to work a 40 hour work week and be able to make a clear distinction between their work life and their family life. This is invaluable for those who thrive on the stability of a regular routine.
Support Services are Important!
6. Be Your Own Boss and Make Your Work Schedule Fit Your Life
A 9 to 5 schedule is not for everyone. While most medical coders are employed to work normal business hours, a growing number are self-employed freelancers. The expanding use of internet technologies in the health care field has made it possible for more medical billing to be done remotely. If you are entrepreneur at heart, or need the flexibility of working from home, then working as an independent medical coder may be an option for you.
7. A First Step Toward New Opportunities
Finally, getting a job as a medical coder can serve as a foot in the door that allows you to pursue further clerical and administrative opportunities in health care. Medical coders are in a position to become familiar with the operations of nearly every facet of the health care business. This is something you are not likely to find in other entry-level positions.
As you can see, medical coding offers many possibilities for someone looking to begin a new career. It is definitely a path worth considering.
I have gone through your post. very informative.In today’s market there is a great demand for Medical billing experts. Professionals have potential to deliver highly complex coding and submit medical claims to insurance companies to receive payments in a reliable period of time.
Thanks for the great tips to survive in the medical billing/coding career. Medical coders must have sound knowledge in advanced technologies and medical coding terms. They must analyze the patients records and according to the doctor’s prescribed medicines and diagnosed disease, the coders must convert them into medical codes. Further they must also claim the insurers.
It was a really nice write up. Looking forward to read more from you.
Nice and informative article you have posted. Also, online medical billing and coding software helps tremendously.
Thank you for explaining about medical billing careers. Medical billing is such a valuable field.
Very informative.I agree with this point such as the complex standards and best practices surrounding insurance billing, Medicare, and Medicaid are constantly changing.so never stop learning.The medical coders should analyze the patient’s records and according to the doctor’s prescribed medicines and diagnosed disease, the coders must convert them into medical codes.
I’m glad to see you added “Never Stop Learning.” This is one of the reasons I decided to get started on my medical coding and billing career. Besides it being a perfect fit for me in terms of the healtcare field, I love that it’s always changing and there’s always something to learn. You should check out my 5 Reasons To Consider Medical Coding and Billing
I found your information quite useful and some essential skills required for a coder are good communication skills, computer operating skills and knowledge in medical terminology and diseases.
Great article! A career in medical billing and coding is really bright and this post is really useful for those who are seeing it as a career option.
The medical billing and coding field is one of those areas, where you can make good money. Your medical billing and coding salary depends entirely on your qualification and industry experience.
There’s so much flexibility since it can done from home!
really nice article especially for the medical coder like me.
I completely agree if proper training and certifications are achieved Medical Billing/coding is considered one of the best job options available today. Also it is required a lot as per the current market trends of industry..
Hi,
Thanks for sharing superb article about 7 Reasons Why You Should Start a Medical Billing/Coding Career. This is very useful blog information for online hospital and medical organization. Keep it up such a nice posting like this.
Regards,
Wyatt Hunter,
Billing Gurus.
i have my CCS Certification and can not find work what should i do
It is a very rewarding career. The demand is there (always!). And salary-wise, it pays well. Good luck to all those who wants to pursue this career. I blog on Medical Billing and Coding. There’s a lot of good stuff you can learn from there. I am hoping to keep bringing more value to the medical practice industry.
As a medical coding and billing instructor for 12 years and the author of a medical coding textbook, I have never seen anyone become prepared to work as a medical coder with only three months training. Medical coders require training in medical terminology, anatomy and physiology, disease processes, computer software, healthcare industry background, revenue cycle processes, and beginning, intermediate, and advanced medical coding, including chart abstracting. Typically, this training takes about a year, attending school full time. Three months is simply unrealistic. Having worked with numerous employers to place medical coding grads, I can tell you that none would consider anyone with three months training because they would not have the required skill set. Three months applies more to a medical secretarial or front desk position. Too many schools advertise this short time frame, which is misleading and won’t guarantee anyone a medical coding position. Also, to work from home, employers, including healthcare providers, insurances, and consulting firms, typically require three years in the field experience and a national certification (aapc.com, ahima.org). And coders can’t typically set their own schedule. They always have to meet hard deadlines because they have to assign codes in time for insurance to billed within the required claim filing time limits for providers to be paid.
Beth,
I just completed my CPC exam today and was thinking the exact same thing. 3 months?!? If that’s the case then I just completed a year of school and training for nothing. Even if I could have done the school in 3 months, there is NO WAY I would’ve been prepared for the CPC exam 3 months in. It takes time to become accustomed to the terminology. Its not just something you can cram for and regurgitate. Coding takes practice. Only 28% of first time testers with no coding experience pass the CPC exam on the first try. Something like 50-60% of testers with actual coding experience pass the first time. It’s not something to be taken lightly.