The Medical Billing and Coding Job Outlook

The Medical Billing and Coding Job outlook is rosy indeed. According to the US Department of Labor, the healthcare information industry is expected to grow faster than the average for all occupations over the next decade. This rapidly growing segment of the economy includes medical coding professionals.  The following is a direct quote from the bls.gov website (bureau of labor statistics government website):

“Job prospects should be very good. In addition to job growth, openings will result from the need to replace technicians who retire or leave the occupation permanently. Technicians with a strong background in medical coding will be in particularly high demand.”

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Just to give you some perspective, almost $400 billion dollars is spent each year on Medicare claims, provided to about 45 million participants.  This is just Medicare. Medicaid represents another subset of the medical industry that is almost as large. Private pay is larger still.  The bottom line is that all of these claims have to be processed each year.

Medical billing and coding professionals are in extremely high demand. In fact, medical billing and coding is one of the fastest growing segments in the rapidly growing health information industry. And demographic trends in the United States and around the world suggest that this growth in medical billing and coding employment will continue for many years to come – creating a robust medical billing and coding job outlook. A rapidly aging population, combined with advances in complex treatment options almost guarantees solid job prospects for medical billing and coding professionals well into the future.

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According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, medical records and health information technicians hold about 170,000 jobs, and more than a third of those jobs are in hospitals.  That means that almost two thirds of the medical billing and coding jobs are located in smaller healthcare facilities such as clinics or individual or group physician offices, or in home health care or nursing homes or with insurance firms.  Public health departments and other government organizations also employ a significant number of health information technicians.

According to the bls.gov website:

“New jobs are expected in offices of physicians as a result of increasing demand for detailed records, especially in large group practices. New jobs also are expected in home health care services, outpatient care centers, and nursing and residential care facilities. Although employment growth in hospitals will not keep pace with growth in other health care industries, many new jobs will, nevertheless, be created.”

Overall the medical billing and coding occupations are expected to increase by about 18% over the next decade. This is significantly higher than the average for all occupations.  I summary, the medical coding and billing career field is an exceptional place to be and will be for some time to come. Getting the requisite training now will yield a lifetime of benefits and job security!

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