Medical Billing Collector Job Description, Key Duties and Responsibilities

Medical Billing Collector Job Description, Key Duties and Responsibilities

This post provides complete information on the job description of a medical billing collector, to help increase your knowledge of what they do.

It presents the key duties, tasks, and responsibilities that majorly make up the medical billing collector work description in most organizations.

It also shows the major requirements most recruiters will want individuals seeking the medical billing collector role to meet to be hired.

Please, continue reading to learn more about the medical billing collector career:

What Does a Medical Billing Collector Do?

A medical billing collector is responsible for preparing and submitting patients’ bills for either insurance or private pay.

A medical billing collector can be referred to as a bridge between medical patients and their health insurance carrier.

His/her job description entails operating on a high level of professionalism and strictly adhering to all debt collection rules and regulations.

It also involves retrieving debt and collecting bills that are due for medical services rendered.

In other words, a medical billing collector is responsible for overseeing insurance and patient billing work and ensuring that medical payments are collected and posted in a timely fashion.

He/she serves as an agent that collects medical payments from patients who have received medical services but are yet to pay their bills.

He/she is responsible for executing several important day-to-day activities.

One of the duties that are carried out by a medical billing collector is to research, by hunting down patients who are overdue on their medical bills, with the use of the Internet, housing records, family contacts, credit bureaus, and several other necessary means that are required to find debtors.

Another duty that makes up the medical billing collector work description is to inform patients about their overdue bills, either via the telephone or by following up on written or email correspondence regarding delinquency.

He/she is also responsible for negotiating a reasonable payment plan, since patients may not have the money to pay their medical bills.

He/she is expected to examine employment, income, financial status, debt and expenses with over-extended patients to come up with a payment plan that is beneficial for both parties.

The medical billing collector must also follow up, once an agreement is reached, to ensure that the debtor makes payments consistently.

To become a medical billing collector demands that individuals possess and demonstrate certain skills and attributes that guarantee efficiency in the job position.

Some of the required skills and qualities include customer service skills, teamwork, problem-solving skills, good organizational skills, adequate knowledge of accounting and bookkeeping procedures, computer literacy, excellent written and verbal communication skills, and good multitasking skills.

In terms of academic qualifications, the job of a medical billing collector requires the ideal candidate or an interested individual to have at least a High School diploma.

Some employers also prefer candidates who have several years of previous experience in a similar field.

Medical Billing Collector Salary: The mean salary for a medical billing collector is $38,220 annually.

Medical Billing Collector Job Description Example/Sample/Template

Here are major tasks, duties, and responsibilities that typically define the medical billing collector job description in most organizations:

Ensuring that patients’ bills are prepared and submitted for both insurance and private pay
Researching and contacting clients/patients to inform them about overdue bills and accounts
Contacting insurance companies to determine the status of submitted claims and investigating reasons for claim denial
Ensuring that all posted payments are reviewed for accuracy and comprehensiveness
Negotiating for a reasonable payment plan, when patients are unable to pay medical bills due to their financial position
Preparing and submitting billing data and medical claims to insurance organizations
Settling financial discrepancies and monitoring missed payments
Overseeing and maintaining billing software by updating cash spreadsheets, rate change, and current collection reports
Maintaining quality results by strictly adhering to standards
Involving legal authorities when patients refuse to pay.

Medical Billing Collector Job Description for Resume

If you have worked before or are presently working as a medical billing collector and are making a resume for a new job, having the professional experience section in it will strengthen it.

The professional or work experience section gives you the opportunity to highlight the duties and responsibilities you have effectively performed as a medical billing collector, which can be of interest to the recruiter to grant you an interview.

You can apply the medical billing collector job description example provided above in making the perfect professional experience section for your resume.

Medical Billing Collector Requirements – Skills, Knowledge, and Abilities for Career Success

If you are seeking the medical billing collector role, here are important requirements recruiters may expect you to meet to be hired:

Excellent written and verbal communication skills, since a medical billing collector is expected to interact with patients who owe debts, insurance companies, team members, and the medical organization’s management
Good endurance skill, which involves the ability to work efficiently and productively in a high-pressure environment
Computer literacy skills, as he/she will be expected to use relevant computer billing software, and must also be proficient in Microsoft Office
Good negotiation skills, since a medical billing collector must be able to negotiate with patients who are refusing to pay their overdue medical bills, and must be able to come up with reasonable payment plan that is beneficial to both the patient and the medical organization
Strong customer service and interpersonal skills which enable a medical billing collector to answer any questions that patients or insurance companies may have
At least a high School Diploma and several years of previous experience in a related field.

Conclusion

If you are a recruiter or HR manager needing to hire for the medical billing collector position, you will need to inform prospective candidates of the expected duties and responsibilities they will perform working as a collector for medical billing with your company.

You will have to do this by making and publishing a detailed description of the role applying the sample medical billing collector job description above.

This post is also helpful to individuals interested in the medical billing collection career; they will be able to increase their knowledge of the duties and responsibilities normally performed by billing collectors in a medical setting.

This knowledge will help them to make informed decision about starting a career in the medical billing collection field.