Billing and posting clerks and machine operators, commonly called billing clerks, compile records of charges for services rendered or goods sold, calculate and record the amounts of these services and goods, and prepare invoices to be mailed to customers.
Billing clerks review purchase orders, sales tickets, hospital records, or charge slips to calculate the total amount due from a customer. They must take into account any applicable discounts, special rates, or credit terms. A billing clerk for a trucking company often needs to consult a rate book to determine shipping costs of machine parts, for example. A hospital’s billing clerk may need to contact an insurance company to determine what items will be reimbursed and for how much. In accounting, law, consulting, and similar firms, billing clerks calculate client fees based on the actual time required to perform the task. They keep track of the accumulated hours and dollar amounts to charge to each job, the type of job performed for a customer, and the percentage of work completed.
After billing clerks review all necessary information, they compute the charges, using calculators or computers. They then prepare itemized statements, bills, or invoices used for billing and recordkeeping purposes. In one organization, the clerk might prepare a bill containing the amount due and the date and type of service; in another, the clerk would produce a detailed invoice with codes for all goods and services provided. This latter form might list the items sold, the terms of credit, the date of shipment or the dates services were provided, a salesperson’s or doctor’s identification, if necessary, and the sales total.
Computers and specialized billing software allow many clerks to calculate charges and prepare bills in one step. Computer packages prompt clerks to enter data from handwritten forms, and to manipulate the necessary entries of quantities, labor, and rates to be charged. Billing clerks verify the entry of information and check for errors before the computer prints the bill. After the bills are printed, billing clerks check them again for accuracy. In offices that are not automated, billing machine operators run off the bill on a billing machine to send to the customer.
In addition to producing invoices, billing clerks may be asked to handle follow-up questions from customers and resolve any discrepancies or errors. And, finally, all changes must be entered in the accounting records.
.Employment of billing and posting clerks and machine operators is expected to grow more slowly than the average for all occupations through the year 2012. At the same time that computers are greatly simplifying the billing process and reducing the need for billing clerks, companies are putting greater emphasis on getting bills out faster in order to get paid more quickly. In addition, the fact that most billing clerks work in the fastest-growing sector of our economy (the health care sector) will generate more jobs for billing clerks in the future. But as the process becomes simplified, other people, particularly accounting and bookkeeping clerks, are taking on the billing function. In addition to employment growth, many job openings will occur as workers transfer to other occupations or leave the labor force. Turnover in the occupation is relatively high, a not unexpected characteristic of an entry-level occupation requiring only a high school diploma.
Most of the employment growth will occur in the expanding health services industries and in accounting firms and other billing services companies, as a result of increased outsourcing of the service. Other areas will see declines as the billing function becomes increasingly automated and invoices and statements are automatically generated upon delivery of the service or shipment of goods. Bills also will increasingly be delivered electronically over the Internet, eliminating the production and mailing of paper bills. The health services area will see increasing automation, with more medical billers using electronic billing software to submit insurance claims to the insurer. Doing this speeds up the process and eliminates many of the coding errors to which medical bills are prone. The standardization of codes in the medical field also is expected to simplify medical bills and reduce errors.
Information on employment opportunities for billing clerks is available from local offices of the State employment service.
(See the introductory statement on financial clerks for information on working conditions, training requirements, and earnings.)
QUESTION May a law firm delegate full discretion and authority for the preparation of fee bills to a non-lawyer employee. At present, the firm's practice is periodically to send bills, signed by a partner, to the insurance company for its professional services. The firm employs a non-lawyer who prepares the bills based upon the attorneys' time sheets, proofreads them, and sends them to the client once a partner has signed them. Decisions as to the propriety of the bill would be left to the clerk's judgment. The determination of fees and the rendition of bills is an important aspect of the fiduciary relationship between attorney and client, not a mere ministerial task.
Summary of: http://www.abcny.org/Ethics/eth1994-9.htm
Utility bills are processed and mailed to City of Hubbard utility customers at the end of each month. Billings are for the prior month's utility consumption. HOW METERS ARE READ The City of Hubbard Utility Billing Office is responsible for reading meters, processing bills, and collecting utility payments for the City's 3,500 utility customers. Utility accounts are organized into twenty-three books that are read once monthly. Electric readings are taken visually and then keyed into an electronic VersaTerm MC-5 keypad.
Summary of: http://www.cityofhubbard.com/billing.htm
Once they calculate the total amount due from a patient, they must prepare invoices to be sent out and ensure prompt payment. Another major responsibility for a medical billing clerks is to contact insurance companies to determine what goods and services will be reimbursed and for how much. Billing clerks may work part-time or full-time, as well as evenings and weekends depending on the type of employment. Individuals interested in medical billing must be highly organized, pay close attention to details, have good analytical skills, and be able to work well under pressure. These include hospitals, outpatient clinics, home health agencies, insurance agencies, long-term care facilities, consulting firms, government agencies, and private industries.
Summary of: http://www.mshealthcareers.com/careers/medicalbillingclerk.htm
Just as you sift through a mass of envelopes each day, someone on the other end of the process produces the mass of bills sent out to people just like you. Billing clerks are those people. They keep records, calculating how much a customer owes and how much a customer has paid. Their job may involve reviewing purchase orders, sales tickets, hospital records, time sheets, charge slips, and other documents relevant to the billing process. Employers in healthcare, however, prefer to hire medical billers with some formal training, usually from an accredited vocational or career training school.
Summary of: http://www3.ccps.virginia.edu/career_prospects/briefs/A-D/BillingClerks.shtml
Billing, cost, and rate clerks keep the records, calculate the charges, and maintain the files of payments made for goods or services. Billing machine operators operate the machines that generate the bills, statements, and invoices. Billing clerks review purchase orders, bills of lading, sales tickets, hospital records, or charge slips to calculate the total amount due from a customer. Once all the information has been entered, billing machine operators then run off the bill that will be sent to the customer. Employment Billing clerks held about 409,000 jobs in 1992.
Summary of: http://www.edonline.com/collegecompass/oohb0159.htm
Billing machine operators run machines that generate bills, statements, and invoices. Billing clerks review purchase orders, bills of lading, sales tickets, hospital records, or charge slips to calculate the total amount due from a customer. They keep track of the accumulated hours and dollar amounts to charge to each job, the type of job performed for a customer, and the percentage of work completed. Working Conditions With the exception of library assistants and bookmobile drivers, records processing clerks typically are employed in an office environment. Employment In 1998, billing clerks held about 342,000 jobs, and billing machine operators held about 107,000 jobs.
Summary of: http://guide.symplicity.com/resources/profession_article.php?id=178
While most financial clerks work in offices, maintaining and processing various accounting records, some deal directly with customers, taking in and paying out money. Depending on their specific titles, these workers perform a wide variety of financial recordkeeping duties. Payroll and timekeeping clerks compute wages for payroll records and review employee timecards. Computers also enable clerks to access data within files more quickly and even generate statements automatically. Because the majority of financial clerks use computers on a daily basis, these workers may experience eye and muscle strain, backaches, headaches, and repetitive motion injuries.
Summary of: http://www.collegegrad.com/careers/admin05.shtml
Billing clerks review purchase orders, sales tickets, hospital records, or charge slips to calculate the total amount due from a customer. A hospital’s billing clerk may need to contact an insurance company to determine what items will be reimbursed and for how much. They then prepare itemized statements, bills, or invoices used for billing and recordkeeping purposes. This latter form might list the items sold, the terms of credit, the date of shipment or the dates services were provided, a salesperson’s or doctor’s identification, if necessary, and the sales total. Although all industries employ billing clerks, the health services industry employs the most.
Summary of: http://www.collegegrad.com/careers/admin07.shtml
Billing machine operators run the machines that generate the bills, statements, and invoices. Billing clerks review purchase orders, bills of lading, sales tickets, hospital records, or charge slips to calculate the total amount due from a customer. After billing clerks review all necessary information, they compute the charges using calculators or computers. Once all the information has been entered, billing machine operators then run off the bill that will be sent to the customer. Employment In 1996, billing clerks held about 335,000 jobs, and billing machine operators held about 102,000.
Summary of: http://www.umsl.edu/services/govdocs/ooh9899/72.htm