Rates for medical interpreting
Thread poster: Christiane Buessard
Christiane Buessard
Christiane Buessard
United States
English to French
+ ...
Nov 25, 2019

Hi there,
I am a freelance medical interpreter who is just starting out (French and Spanish). I have approached the local hospital and they are very much interested and asking for my rates. I am new to this industry and don't want to price myself too high, but not too low either. Do you have any idea how much I should ask per hour? I am located in New Hampshire.
I hope you can help!
Thank you!!!


 
Tom in London
Tom in London
United Kingdom
Local time: 08:52
Member (2008)
Italian to English
Work it out Nov 26, 2019

Christiane Buessard wrote:

Hi there,
I am a freelance medical interpreter who is just starting out (French and Spanish). I have approached the local hospital and they are very much interested and asking for my rates. I am new to this industry and don't want to price myself too high, but not too low either. Do you have any idea how much I should ask per hour? I am located in New Hampshire.
I hope you can help!
Thank you!!!


My suggestions: work out how much you will need to cover all your costs, including your working time and travel time, and make a fair profit, expressed as an hourly rate. It's important to get this right because it sounds like the kind of work that will last well into the future ! It's better to pitch yourself too high rather than too low.

[Edited at 2019-11-26 16:37 GMT]


Christiane Buessard
Liviu-Lee Roth
 
Liviu-Lee Roth
Liviu-Lee Roth
United States
Local time: 04:52
Romanian to English
+ ...
Hi Christiane Nov 26, 2019

Christiane Buessard wrote:

Hi there,
I am a freelance medical interpreter who is just starting out (French and Spanish). I have approached the local hospital and they are very much interested and asking for my rates. I am new to this industry and don't want to price myself too high, but not too low either. Do you have any idea how much I should ask per hour? I am located in New Hampshire.
I hope you can help!
Thank you!!!



It depends where in the US are you working. Rates differ As a rule, you should charge more for EN-FR than EN-SP. In my area, PA, it is between $35 - 45/hr min 2 hrs. In other places in the US the rate may go up or down, depending on the market.

lee

Sorry, I did not read that you are in New Hampshire. My suggestion is to contact a local agency (LSP) and ask them what they pay for medical interpreting. If you want to stand out as a Spanish interpreter, I would recommend to take the 40 hrs. „Bridging-the-Gap” course and if you can, talke the certification exam for medical interpreters.
Good luck,
lee

[Edited at 2019-11-26 22:36 GMT]


 
Weiwei Zou
Weiwei Zou
Australia
2 cents for the rate from my agencies Feb 12, 2020

hi

the rates of interpreters are similar to most of the professionals here in australia, it's slightly higher than admin category but lower than other health/legal entry level rates. You can expect to pay 69 dollars for a standard 30min physio session, and 87 dollars for a hour session with a general psychologist, whereas you the interpreting agencies provide 87-110 dollars for a 2 hours medical interpreting job. hope this will help you.


 


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Rates for medical interpreting







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