The difference between medical coding and medical billing

 Medical billing and medical coding are different professions, but they share much in common. Both work on the administrative side of the medical industry and even share many of the same job tasks and skill sets.

"There's a lot of overlap between the two," says Raemarie Jimenez, director of education for the AAPC, a national medical-coding training and certification association. "In order to be a good biller you have to have knowledge in coding, and in order to be a good coder you have to have knowledge in billing. If they do have two separate positions, in some cases an employer might be looking for someone who can do both."

Both jobs fall under the umbrella of medical records and health information technicians, and both are set to experience strong job growth in the future. According to the U.S Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment for these professions is expected to increase by 21 percent through the year 2020, as demand for health services grows with an aging population.

Medical coders review medical records and translate the information contained in them, assigning codes to the procedures and diagnoses performed by health practitioners. Using these codes, they create claims to be paid.

Coders verify the work that has been done for a patient by checking a variety of sources, including transcriptions of the doctor's notes, ordered laboratory tests, requested imaging studies and other sources.

Medical billers come into the picture after the coder's work is done.

"[Billers] make sure that the data entered is correct, and are in charge of transmitting the claim," Jimenez says. "Once the claim goes, it gets paid. If not, there's a denial or a rejection. In those cases, the billers will follow up and make sure claims are paid correctly. If there's a problem, they're in charge of fixing it and resubmitting it."

Medical billers might also contact patients regarding billing errors or past due bills. Their job can also involve collecting payments, making adjustments, interpreting explanation of benefits, handling denied claims, and processing appeals.

In many cases, the medical coder and medical biller are the same person. If the jobs are done by separate people, they usually work closely together to make sure all invoices are paid properly.

In terms of training, people interested in medical coding have a variety of programs to choose from, varying in length from a few months to an entire year. Although there are no industry-wide minimum training standards, the AAPC does report that coding professionals strengthen their career prospects by earning bachelor's and master's degrees.

Medical coders and medical billers must have two very important skills: attention to detail and critical thinking.

"A lot of what we do involves reading insurance policies and applying the policies. From a coding perspective and even a biller's perspective, understanding medical terminology -- anatomy and medical terms -- is very important," Jimenez says. "If you don't know what a doctor did, you can't translate that to a code."

And, coders and billers must be willing to adapt to a constantly-changing industry.

"In our industry, things change so frequently that you have to be a good researcher, and always be looking for new information and applying new information. We have code updates every year," Jimenez says. "If you're someone who doesn't like change, this is not for you. But it's a great position for someone who likes to be challenged."

According to CBSalary.com, the average national salary for a medical biller is $23,037, while the average salary for a medical coder is $48,281.