The responsibilities that are encompassed by electronic medical billing are as diverse as the field of medicine itself. Electronic medical billing is too often thought of as a synonym for medical coding when the fact of the matter is that although the two careers are related, they are two completely different jobs. Both jobs are important and each has a very different and unique set of responsibilities.

The job of the coder involves choosing the correct diagnostic and procedure codes for the medical billing process. The electronic medical billing specialist then makes decisions based on these codes in order to achieve optimal reimbursements. He is the one who truly sets up how the hospitals, clinics, and doctors get paid for their time, making an expert in the field a truly important commodity.

Electronic medical billing specialists can be best described as the income managers of the medical practice. Medical billing is often called the doctor