Proper medical billing and coding training is needed by employees of hospitals, large medical practices, and even solo practitioners. Every healthcare facility, big or small, must deal with the paperwork and regulations surrounding the filing and billing of medical claims. Mis-coded and improperly billed procedures negatively impact a healthcare provider's bottom line.
Current personnel, future hires and any independent coding and billing agencies should learn current rules and regulations by enrolling in medical billing courses and medical coding training. When determining your medical billing and coding training needs, keep these things in mind:
- A trained medical coder correctly codes procedures and services and thus ensures that insurance claims are processed in a timely fashion without being kicked back to the provider for correction.
- Staff who receive medical billing training handle the billing of patients and coordinate payments from insurers; the medical biller's job is to make sure bills go out and payments get processed in order to maintain the cash flow of the office.
- Your staff and independent agencies should participate in continuing education to stay abreast of current practices and rules and to maintain medical billing and medical coding certification.
Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done
Look to your local career and tech schools for training
Community colleges, career techs, and private vocational schools usually provide medical billing courses, medical coding training, and even medical transcription training. Students can earn a degree or take continuing education classes, normally at a reasonable cost.
I recommend: Find an accredited institution in your area through one of the main career and tech school accrediting agencies: the
Accrediting Council for Continuing Education & Training, the
Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges of Technology, or the
Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools. You can also use the
Edu-Search engine to search by state.
Investigate online medical billing schools and online medical coding courses
Online medical coding courses are convenient; however, screen programs carefully to avoid paying too much or getting involved with a diploma mill scam. Keep in mind that some online medical billing schools and medical coding training programs are not accredited to qualify for Federal Financial Aid programs.
I recommend: Blackstone Career Institute provides
medical billing and coding training and
medical transcription training.
Education Destination can connect you with other reputable online schools.
Gear training towards achieving medical billing and coding certification
All training should satisfy the requirements for certification. Although medical billers usually don't need certification, medical coders must hold a current certification.
I recommend: The American Academy of Professional Coders provides resources for
classroom,
online, and
book-based distance learning certification coursework. The
American Health Information Management Association offers courses in coding that prepare the student for medical coding certification.
Tips & Tactics
Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide
- Medical coding and medical transcription require a detailed knowledge of medical terminology. Make sure the medical coding training or medical transcription training you choose includes sufficient coursework in terminology. Medical billing courses do not need to spend much time on terminology.
- Review the training and credentials of new hires and independent medical billing companies. Steer clear of candidates who purchased diplomas or certificates from self-paced programs with little oversight of the student's work.
The official source of Medical Billing and Coding Training is
the Medical Billing and Coding Training page at Business.com
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