Tips on Choosing Between Becoming an In-House Medical Biller vs. a Contractor

As a medical biller in the healthcare industry, you’ve probably been asked the same question repeatedly: do you prefer to work in-house or as a contractor? It’s not like one answer is correct versus the other. As a medical biller, you will be responsible for issuing invoices to insurance companies and patients, processing payments, tracking charges, reconciling bills with providers, and various other related tasks. If you’re an in-house medical biller, you will also have access to the company’s computer network and its resources whenever needed. But if you choose the contracting route instead, you are essentially your own boss. Here are a couple of things to consider when choosing which route to pursue.

1. Years of Experience
   Medical Billing is submitting health insurance claims on behalf of the patient to various health insurance payors to acquire payment for services rendered in a medical facility. The more experience you have the more attractive you would be to hire. Sometimes it makes sense to acquire that experience by taking on a job as an in-house medical biller while you work to hone your skills, learn more about the industry, and plan for creating your own medical billing practice or business.
2. How do you Work Best
   In what situation do you think you would be the most productive? This is an important consideration. Are you at your best when you are around people and can feed off of their energy for example? Or, are you most productive when you work alone? When you work as an in-house medical biller you are often required to be in the office and in the mix of things. This includes patients coming in and out and regular activity from the rest of the people that also work in the office. Whereas, if you work as a contractor, you are likely to work remotely and can even take on multiple contracts depending on the workloads.

Tri Smith, Instructor

Tri Smith is a Managing Partner and Instructor at MedicalBillingCourse.com, where he leads both the strategic direction and instructional delivery of the program. With over six years of experience, he works closely with students and internal teams to ensure the course remains aligned with real-world medical billing practices while continuing to evolve with industry needs.

His work focuses on guiding learners through the full medical billing lifecycle, from foundational processes to more advanced topics such as claim accuracy, payer communication, and compliance. He is directly involved in how the course is structured, how assessments are designed, and how students are supported as they progress from training into practical application.

Under his leadership, MedicalBillingCourse.com launched the 2026 edition of the course, which includes the new Medical Billing and Coding certification track and reflects a more modern, structured approach to training. These updates emphasize clarity, real-world readiness, and scalable learning systems that support both new students and returning graduates.

Tri has helped thousands of students complete their certification and move into roles ranging from remote billing positions to in-office healthcare settings and independent billing businesses. His approach emphasizes practical execution, consistent standards, and the ability to turn training into a real opportunity.