Are you a stay-at-home mom or nursing mother? Are you an unemployed graduate, or you are simply looking for an extra source of income? If your answer to any of the questions above is yes, then below is an in-depth guide on how to work from home doing medical billing and coding jobs online. If you have been looking for a way to take up a good job in the lucrative healthcare industry without necessarily going through the long years of study that most disciplines require; then medical billing might be one of your best options.
Medical billers are vital to the business success of the healthcare industry, as they keep business running smoothly for physicians, hospitals, third party billing companies, and even the federal and state governments. As a medical biller, you would be required to review hospital and patient records, calculate charges, submit claims, and answer patient and insurance company questions regarding claims.
Medical billers work with hospitals, nursing homes, physicians’ offices, rehabilitation facilities, and third party billing services such as consulting firms or insurance companies. Medical billing gives you the chance to make money while working from home, although some positions may require you to work on-site. To become a medical biller, you must meet have the following requirements:
How to Work From Home Doing Medical Billing Jobs Online
1. Get the necessary education
The medical billing profession is open to anyone with a high school diploma or an equivalent GED certificate. This qualifies you to enroll for a medical billing course. Most medical billing courses are independent of standard degree programs at local colleges and can be completed in the classroom or online.
The medium of learning notwithstanding, it is important you choose a medical billing course offered by an accredited organization that has been training medical billers for several years. If you have not yet graduated from high school, courses like computers, accounting, math, speech, and business would make a solid foundation for your future career.
2. Enroll for training
To become a medical biller, you must memorize and understand basic medical terminologies, diagnoses, and coding. You must also familiarize yourself with the laws and regulations for the state or country you are working in as well as the differences between insurance plans such as Medicare and Medicaid.
Although a medical billing certificate program will prepare you for the career, you need to get some on-the-job training to hone your skills. You also need to be trained by an experienced medical biller for a couple of weeks.
3. Obtain licensing or certification
Although state and federal laws do not require a certification to work as a medical biller, most employers do. So, it is very important that you enroll for a certification program or exam. The American Medical Billing Association offers a widely recognized certification program for medical billers. Keep in mind that your certification must be renewed periodically. So, on-going education is a must, too.
4. Apply for medical billing jobs / contracts online
Having met all the requirements, you can begin your search for a medical billing job. Most medical billers who work from home started with on-site positions in medical offices. Starting out in a medical office helps you prove that you have the ability to work on-site and at home, and are not seeking a work-from-home opportunity because you are unable to fit into an office environment.
After working in a medical office for some time, you can start seeking out work-at-home opportunities. If you are already working in a medical office as a medical biller and want to work at home, one of the first steps to take is to inquire about any available choices that your employer grants to long-term workers. Ask about the possibility of work-from-home opportunities.
If your current employer will not allow you to work from home, many other employers will allow you to. So, you will need to pursue additional opportunities while still working in the office in order to keep earning some income pending when you will get the perfect gig.
One of the best ways to find employers who will allow you to work from home is to register with freelance outsourcing sites such as Elance, Guru, Freelancer, and Odesk. These sites connect employers with skilled professionals that they can remotely work with in the long term.
If you cannot find a medical billing job, you can use your qualifications and certification to start your own medical billing business . You will need to know how to deal with legislation-related issues, such as Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act as well as other industry-specific requirements.
If you have the ability to start your own business right from the start, that is best. You will discover that self-employment is a better option for a work-at-home career. In conclusion, employment of certified medical billers, like that of other health information technicians, is expected to increase in the U.S. by 21 percent between 2010 and 2022. The increasing demand is due to an aging U.S. population that requires more frequent medical tests, treatments, and a concomitant increase in health claims.