Why The Medical Coder Average Salary Will Continue To Rise

The need for healthcare professionals has been soaring for the past few years, maybe even dating back over twenty years ago. Rightly so, as the demand increases so should the salary, which is great for you if you're looking for a career in the health care field, specifically if you are or looking to become a medical coder.

According to the the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, dated 2007, the average health information technician, including medical coders, made $31,450. Those who worked in large cities and/or the pharmaceutical industry made significantly more, as in over $53,000. These equate to about $15 to $25 an hour for a 40 hour a week job. These make for a compelling reason to go to school to train as a medical coder, including an online medical coding education for flexibility in time.

Other factors affected wages as well such as responsibilities, whether or not working for a large hospital or a small physicians network. Also, geographical locations made a difference. Those who worked in large metropolitan areas such as New York, Chicago, and San Francisco made more than those who worked in suburbs and smaller cities.

And great news for the medical profession. Pay should increase in the next few years. Currently, there are two major economic forces affecting the health care in general. The first is the stimulus plan that President Obama and Congress passed in February 2009. It has the health care information technology modernization provision. And the second is the aging US population.

But first, let's see how medical coders fit in the health care puzzle. Any patient's medical records that are created are entered onto a computer system. These are essentially doctor's prescription, treatment, medication, etc. It is up to the medical coders to enter these data into the system accurately so that the patient may receive continuous care.

So how do the stimulus plan and aging US population increase medical coder salary

1) The Health Care Information Technology Modernization

The need to lower health care for all is a top priority. You heard the speeches, over 40 million Americans are either uninsured or under-insured. Modernizing the way information is shared among health care organizations, such as hospitals and small clinics, can cut down a lot of time and costs. By doing so, savings can be passed on to the consumers in the form of lower insurance premiums, out-of-pocket costs, medicine, etc.

To realize the cost savings, medical coders are needed to enter the data into the comptuer system. As more and more health care organization upgrade their system, the demand for medical coders shall also rise.

2) The Aging US population

Perhaps the bigger of the two factors for the increasing demand for medical care, and thus, healthcare workers such as medical coders, is the aging population According to the US Census Bureau, the percent of senior citizens rose from 6.5% in 2000 to an estimated 12.4% in 2006. Senior citizens are the most diligent medical patients. They often schedule doctors appointment routinely. The more care they need, the more medical records are required and generated.

There's little doubt that the future of the health care industry is up. With the problems that Americans have with losing jobs to outsourcing, health care could be a bright spot for future job seekers. It is difficult to outsource health care personnel because the patients are here. For someone looking for a medical coding career, the outlook could not be better, but you still have to complete your education by attending a medical coding college.

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