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Medical billing supervisors are in charge of the team or department that bills clients, insurance companies and government agencies to keep money coming in to health care organizations. The size and type of the practice or facility dictate a medical billing supervisor's specific duties. Generally, the job includes recruiting, hiring and managing billing personnel for the department or office; overseeing billing operational and financial standards; fulfilling business objectives for the billing segment by measuring results against plans; and researching, developing, implementing and updating billing policies, procedures and guidelines.

Depending on the size and type of the health care facility or medical practice, an associate, bachelor's or master's degree in medical billing may be required. Coursework can include billing management, medical documentation, medical terminology, health insurance claims and forms, medical insurance, managed care, electronic data exchange, and government programs. Coursework in medical billing office management, a general knowledge of management principles and previous medical billing experience may be additional requirements for medical billing supervisors.

Medical billing supervisor salary & employment predictions

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts that employment growth for medical and health services managers will be faster than average at 16 percent from 2008 through 2018. Both first-line supervisors and managers and medical health services managers in physicians' offices are projected to have growth of 34.1 percent; employment in hospitals is only expected to grow by 8.1 percent for both career paths.

Because the size and type of health care facility significantly affects compensation, salaries for medical billing supervisors can vary based on whether you supervise a small practice, a larger group practice or an entire department. For example, in 2010, the BLS salary range for medical and health services managers was $51,280 to $144,880, with hourly wage rates of $24.65 to $69.65. First-line supervisors in physicians' offices had a salary range of $28,870 to $76,930 with hourly rates of $13.88 to $36.99.

Glassdoor.com posts jobs for medical billing supervisors at $21 to $25 per hour--and Salary.com reports the median salary at $56,110 for billing supervisors, with health care business office managers earning an average median salary of $63,054.

Medical billing supervisors may want to consider Texas, North Carolina or Arizona

States paying the top salaries for first-line supervisors--the District of Columbia, New York and California--also have high costs of living. The same is true for health care business office managers. However, if you look at metro areas around the country and compare cost of living information, Texas, North Carolina and Arizona show a nice balance.

Texas tops this list with the 5th lowest cost of living in the U.S. and unemployment at 8.0 percent. North Carolina has a cost of living below the national median at #22, whereas Arizona has a higher cost of living at #36. The BLS reports the following annual mean wages in 2010 for medical and health services managers in these states:

• Texas: $90,070
• North Carolina: $92,110
• Arizona: $87,380

Medical and health services managers earned the following annual mean wages in specific metropolitan areas in these three states:

• Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown: $97,790
• Charlotte-Gastonia-Concord: $94,720
• Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale: $87,340

Whether you prefer the East Coast or the Southwest, North Carolina, Texas or Arizona could be good places to start your career as a medical billing supervisor.

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