Make money? I'm not making any money because of my decision. You read my reasoning

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you know into signing up.  I felt like a snake oil huckster.  I hated it.  I was flushing money down the toilet from the moment I handed over my money. 

RUN, do not walk away!  I do an entirely different side business now that I really love (in addition to my MTing, which I also love!)  Find something you're good at and that you truly love doing.  Then make a business out of it.  That's the best way to have a side business.  Selling discount toilet paper through Amway/Quixtar?  Not so much. 

Any of you who do this, how in the heck do you make any money? I accepted a job with a company for 4 cpl for VR, but I nearly have to type the entire reports over.  I was doing it part time and it takes so much time that I figured out I am only making 5.00 per hour.  What's the average rate for this?  I  gave it up, it's not worth it for the line rate, considering I was editing typed transcription as well that came back from India and it was just as bad and took just as much time.

I think the only way we newbie MTs can make any money is to make it ourselves, like counterfeiting. 

I consider myself still a newbie at almost 2 years of nearly full-time working at home with IC status.  Love my company and enjoy my work; it is mainly VR and 3 cents per line.  I am rather slow because I keep double checking everything, but on a good day at 8-10 hours and 800 lines I will make $24.  Isn't that encouraging?  

The extra dollars do come in handy and so appreciated for my farmer husband's income, but this could no way support a single income. 

Working for $3.00 per hour was great sometime in the past, you know?  Like 35 cents per gallon of gasoline in 1969. But it 2009.

I do think if we newbies hang in there long enough and become good at our work then we will move up to better pay.  However, we who work for 3 cents or 6 cents per line and are so thankful to be making even that are probably the ones others may blame for the poor pay since transcription companies can hire us so cheaply.

Don't know what the solution is.   

If you consider an 80-hour pay period (which I don't do), at $27 per hour with the 800-number company, you'd make $2160.

At $33/hour, paying $1.80/hour, you'd make $2640 minus $144 (a deductible expense also), still netting you $2496 -- substantially more than the company giving you the toll free number and less pay.

Makes no difference to me.  I personally wish you all would stay away from MDI-MD so I could have more work ... LOL

As a hard worker in this industry to put my son through school to become a medical professional, I can tell you that after all my hard work and broken back, he is still paying student loans, works like an animal, hardly has time for his family, continues his education and is not "rich." He treats his staff like family (constantly haunted by his mother to do this) and barely has time to take a bathroom break. I know there are those with fast cars (always thought they did it to get to the patient faster, but I'm sure that's not the case with some of them) and those who are rude (perhaps not taught right by their moms) but some are just ordinary guys and gals who put their pants on one leg at at time like the rest of us and worry about the next payment like the rest of us. They're not ALL the same. I read another post about docs yawning while dictating. I think in most cases they're exhausted and the paperwork is just another thing to deal with after they put their kids to bed, if they get the chance to do that even. I didn't understand this until I "lived in it". As the babysitter, I can tell you, "it ain't pretty." They suffer just like the rest of us.

Just like tapes get misplaced so does digital dictation.  Also, have you ever timed how long it takes to download and upload files?  I think it runs about the same.  I am assuming this is clinic work.  So, if you don't go the office, then you'll need patient lists faxed or e-mailed, what have you.  It also costs money to have a secure FTP site for transfer.  So, no matter how you look at it, there is that time taken for the administrative end of transcription so to speak. 

To the OP:  I would ask if the problem really is the delivery if you could cut back to two days a week and given them the option of typing STAT reports to be faxed to them OR you could ask if they'd go halfers on a courier service.  But, I think the problem is the cutting of the paper, so you may just want to mention that you'll need to attach a fee. 

I had to attach a FAX fee to an office that was constantly calling and requiring me to search for letters that they apparently hadn't filed yet, so I started charging them for that service.  Guess what?  They don't call as much.  Just a thought.

I'm new to this career. Have only been working for 6 months or so. Does anyone have any advice for a newbie? How do you make a decent living on 6 cpl? Any advice for increasing speed? Thanks.

MB

I applaud you for being truthful and NOT GREEDY..

I know I'm new but at least I have a job Right???

Anyway editing VR at 3 cents a line and not being quick is frustrating... I have been working for a week and I think I made maybe if I'm lucky 200.00, now I left a job making 500.00 a week after taxes... Boy I am stupid... So much for this great career working at home blah blah... I guess I'm totally frustrated considering no one will hire you new and when you get a job they say here is some chicken feed... I can't live off of this, does anyone have any suggestions... I will there is something to be said for getting paid by the hour

I am paid an hourly rate based on the number of lines I edit.  I'm trying to go back to being an MT.  I took a job for this company that pays $12/hr.  I am supposed to average 300 lines per hour.  I can only get a raise if my average is more than this for 6 months.

I don't know about anybody else, but I don't see that I will ever be able to edit more than 300 lines an hour because it takes time to provide feedback.

if you cann't understand what they are saying.  You will sit twiddling your thumbs, going ARHGGH!  7 cpl is not good either, but at least you could be making something compared to nothing with ESL.  Making < $5 an hour typing ESL  versus maybe $10 an hour at 7 cpl... Hard choice..

Was your line rate higher when you started, halfway through, or now?

Hi,

I am pleased with the benefit package and the line rate for insurance, but I was astounded by style they prefer.  It is just so much.  Can one make money there?