Work at home: Med Billing/Trans

[KimDW]

Does anyone here do medical billing/transciption at home? I'm looking into this for the evening for a little extra income. The class at our local college is about $200.

Kimbra

 

[lorajc]

I don't do it at home, but I worked in that field for 6 years in doctor's offices. What questions do you have?

 

[amyg]

Me too. My sister in law is interested in doing the same thing. I've done medical billing for years and years. More and more physicians are sending their transcription offshore, so if you can only take one class, I'd take the medical billing one.

Let us know if you have questions!

 

[KimDW]

After I take the course how do I know where to get a job? Is there and interview process just like other jobs? Is there software involved or is it online. How fast does your computer need to be? We've only had dial-up internet - would I need DSL? What is the pay like. Is there a quota to meet? Or do I work at my own pace?
I'm sure I've got others.

Kimbra

 

[lorajc]

Basically, each place has different rules. There are big companies that have services (which is why I lost my job, as they outsourced the work). I think most places use MS Word and I think dialup would be fine, but your computer may be slower when transmitting. I made $11-12 per hour when I worked for physicians. I did not have a quota to meet, but services may. I always had the boss breathing down my neck cuz there were 2 of us (transcriptionists) and 6 doctors so we were always behind. I think doing it at home may be different. I've known companies that pay you per page, per line, etc. You also need to make sure your home area is set up ergonimically correct, as all of those hours of typing (if incorrectly set up) could cause you to have neck, shoulder and wrist problems. The 2 most important things when you do transcription are good grammar and punctuation skills, being able to interpret foreign doctors and knowing medical terminology.

Hope this helps somewhat.

 

[Dani53]

My sister does this but it is hard to do in the evening with kids. She has to wait until they are in bed and then she is really too tired to get into it. Although she loves the money!! When she needs the extra cash there is a doctor she calls to pick up his overflow...he sends her all the files and she does them in her own time. She could probably work full time doing it, but her day job is fairly sweet as well.

I know she would recommend it!