subject: Medical Billing Or Medical Coding Certification - Do You Have To Be Certified To Get A Good Salary? [print this page] If you're thinking about getting into the medical billing or medical coding field and think you have to be certified to get a good salary or higher wages there are a few things to consider first. You have probably heard a lot about certification. But do you really need to be certified to get a job in medical billing or coding or both and make more money?
The truth is you may not really need this certification. It's a process of education and training and taking national exams but most employers are more concerned about whether you can do the job. Which is better - certification but not really capable or of being capable but no certification? As long as you can do the job that will undoubtedly be the hope of most employers.
Before you enter this field and whether or not you want certification you want to make sure you understand what medical billers and medical coders so. Maybe you won't like the work after spending a lot of time and money on getting the education or training for it.
So you want to make sure that you're going to like it first. You can do that by visiting the billing departments in local hospitals and clinics and visit billing services and asking if you can get an idea what these types of jobs entail and maybe get a look at what you would be doing in the future if you were to get a job with their company, hospital or clinic.
There are numerous certification programs covering a broad range. It is almost better to get some experience in this field before you try to get certified to really know that's what you want to do and that it will help you by getting you a higher hourly wages or salary, which may not be the case.
Some of the job titles that require certification are Certified Claims Assistant Professional, Certified Coding Associate, Certified Coding Specialist, Certified Electronic Claims Professional, Certified Healthcare Reimbursement Specialist, Certified Professional Coder and several others.
So you can see it's important to know the part of this field you want to focus on and it may mean working in some capacity in one of these health facilities or businesses to get a feel for that. Make sure to check this out before you sign up for any training for medical billing or medical coding certification too. Education or experience may be necessary for some of the jobs that don't require certification but many may have apprentice or assistant job openings and still make a good salary or high hourly wages. Make sure to research it thoroughly so you know what you're doing.
