Certification vs. Experience: Which one will land you the Medical Billing job?

So you’ve just completed your medical billing and coding courses and received your certification and you are ready to pursue your career in medical billing! Congratulations you are well on your way to a successful career! But you may be saying, “I’ve applied to jobs but most of them say that I need experience! How will I get the experience if they won’t hire me because I don’t have any?

Although that may be true, there is a way to get the experience you need to begin your career in medical billing. Is certification required to be a medical biller? No, but it can be beneficial once you do get the experience under your belt also. Many people feel they can just dive into being a medical biller because they took courses and have their certification, but honestly, to be a medical biller, you still need the training to help you learn and perform the job in its entirety.

Medical companies want to know they can trust you and that you have the knowledge and experience to handle their billing so, now that you have proven that education wise you understand medical billing to an extent now it's time that you have hands-on experience in the medical billing process to have an even better understanding of how medical billing works. So instead of going strictly after medical billing jobs, try looking for other entry-level jobs that can help you work your way up to becoming a medical biller.

Intern Position

Being an intern could be a way to get your foot in the door towards becoming a medical biller. It may not be ideal financially, because most intern positions do not get paid for the work they do, but they do get paid for gaining knowledge. So if this is something you think can work for you in the beginning, then why not go for it? Who knows it could turn into an actual position if you do well as an intern. Just remember, the goal here is to get experience so you can land the job you want. Check with the school you took medical billing courses from to see if they have a program that offers intern assistance to their students.

Data Entry or Billing Clerk

A data entry or billing clerk can be a great start to reaching towards becoming a medical biller. There are billing and medical companies that are looking for people to do data entry and if you can find a position like this, it could be the start you may need. Data Entry and Billing Clerk work in doctor’s offices, hospitals, laboratories, billing companies, etc.  If you can type and are detailed, this may get recognized and you could potentially get trained as a medical biller. By starting as a data entry or billing clerk you get to learn all the administrative portions of medical billing such as creating patient encounters, scanning patient information documents into the computer system, learning patient care and customer service, and learning how to verify patient information, and insurance and much more.

Front Desk/ Medical Office Assistant

If you have experience in customer service, then starting a front desk or office assistant in a doctor’s office could be ideal for you. You will be upfront and greet customers, answer patient calls, schedule patient appointments, verify patient information, take copays, and assist the office manager with many other clerical things and duties in the office. This is a great opportunity to learn the process of how a doctor’s office works even before the medical billing process begins. If the doctor’s office has a medical biller in-house, you may be able to work and assist the medical biller if needed. Take that chance to ask the medical biller to be a mentor and teach you what they know. If you don’t ask, how are you going to learn to be one, right?

There are other jobs you can apply to just to get your foot in the door. These are just a few positions you can apply for to get you on your way to becoming a medical biller.  Once you do gain the experience, you can start applying for the medical billing jobs you want along with the certification you already have. That way your resume demonstrates that you obtain both the knowledge and the experience to handle the job if you are hired. It’s all about learning, so what are you doing to jump-start your career in medical billing?

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