How to Do Insurance Billing

Becoming an insurance-billing specialist is one way people are starting a career in the health-care field. According to Career Builder Salary.com, the average insurance-billing specialist makes almost $26,000 in 2010, and Health Care Jobs.org indicates that experienced insurance-billing specialists can make $30 to $40 dollars per hour. Insurance-billing specialists work in medical offices, hospitals, or other health-care environments, acting as a liaison between the doctor and the insurance companies so that he can be reimbursed properly for the services he provides to patients. As an insurance-billing specialist, it is important to have excellent communication skills because you will be working with insurance companies which are processing the claims you submit.

Things You'll Need

• Completed course work for insurance and medical billing and coding
• Certification (recommended, but not always required)
• Attention to detail
• Excellent communication skills

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Instructions

How to Become an Insurance-Billing Specialist

• 1

  Investigate the available insurance billing and medical coding courses in your area. Decide if you want to learn in a classroom environment or if you want to take classes online. Before enrolling and paying for the courses, make sure the school has a good reputation. Find out if the school has a job-placement program, and ask what percentage of students are placed successfully. Talk to graduates of the program and find out if the education was enough to help them be successful in the insurance-billing industry.

• 2

  Enroll in and complete the coursework for your insurance-billing training and certification. Health Care Jobs.org recommends taking a training course that takes between nine months and two years to complete. Even though there might be courses that take less time to finish, they might not provide adequate training for you to be successful. Understanding medical terminology and procedure codes are an essential component to becoming a successful insurance-billing specialist.

• 3

  Start working in the insurance-billing industry. Even though your goal might be to start your own insurance-billing business, it is a good idea to gain experience working with other insurance-billing specialists who can help you hone your skills.