Medical Coding Salary

What Do Medical Billing and Coding Specialists Make?

A career as a medical billing and coding specialist enables you to work in a wide variety of medical settings or even to choose your own hours while working from home.

You will organize and manage health records with a focus on quality, accuracy, and confidentiality. 

You will use coding and categorizing systems that enable you to correctly represent patient information to insurance companies and physicians for reimbursement, manage databases, and medical histories.

Taking a program in medical coding will provide you with the skills you need to begin a successful career including keyboarding, business communication, office procedures and administration, ICD 10, patient care, and charting.

You will also learn about anatomy and physiology, HIPAA, medical terminology and ethics.  Without this knowledge, it is difficult to enter the medical coding field and start making a good salary.

However, if you graduate from a program and pass specific certification exams, you can expect the good salary.  The typical medical billing and coding salary in Texas is promising. 

Medical Coding Salary

Medical records and health information technicians earn a median salary of $40,350 per year or $19.40 per hour according to the 2018 report by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS.gov).

The greatest number of medical coding jobs and medical records technicians are in hospitals, physician’s offices and care facilities. However, you can receive an even higher medical coding salary if you work in pharmaceutical manufacturing, drug wholesale, legal services, federal executive branches, or consulting services according to the BLS.  Those who obtain a bachelor’s degree and move into the medical and health services manager occupation earn on average $99,730* as reported by BLS for 2018 (BLS.gov).  

The job outlook for employment in the medical records and health information technicians category are projected to grow from 2018 to 2028 by 11% (BLS.gov). 

This increase is much faster than the average rate for all occupations due to an aging population that will need more medical tests and treatment, meaning that insurance companies will need to make more reimbursements and medical professionals will have greater need for electronic health records.  

There was a total of 215,500 medical records and health information technician jobs in 2018, with an additional 23,100 more jobs expected by 2028 (BLS.gov).  Medical billing and coding specialists need to have a certification to enter the occupation.

When choosing a course to study, search for schools like Southern Careers Institute that offer training for the Certified Billing and Coding Specialist (CBCS), Electronic Health Records Specialist (EHRS), and the Certified Medical Administration Assistant (CMAA) examination.

Programs that offer a chance to gain experience, skills badges, certifications and career support provide the best chance of finding a job with a good salary straight after graduation.

Sources

• Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook, Medical Records and Health Information Technicians, on the Internet at https://www.bls.gov/ooh/healthcare/medical-records-and-health-information-technicians.htm.