2. Is Medical Coding is same as Medical Billing?
3. Responsibilities of Medical Coder:
4. Medical Coding Certification:
5. Medical Billing and Coding Degree Programs:
6. Salary Range for Medical Coders:
7. How do Medical Coders work?
8. What type of Surrounding does Medical Coder have?
What is Medical Coding ?
Medical coding professional review the patient documentation and records provided by doctors and other healthcare providers.
After this step, they translate the written documentation into universally accepted and industry-standard medical codes. These assigned medical codes are often used to recompense claims by hospitals and their physicians for insurance purposes.
Precise medical coding is indispensable to the healthcare industry for getting appropriate reimbursement.
Other than this, these particular and distinguished data contained in medical codes provides a clear portrait of a given patient’s health history.
By translating medical terminology into standardized codes, information of the patients can be transmitted with great efficiency and orderliness.
Actually, each and every medical procedure and patient encounter has a number or else the CPT code that is related to it that corresponds to another code for a diagnosis (an ICD code).
Did Medical Coding is same as Medical Billing?
Medical Coding is not same as Medical Billing ;
They both have two different functions which takes place in medical organizations.
Responsibilities of Medical Coder:
Medical Coder is a person who is responsible primarily for extracting and allocating right coding of the claims.
They check a variety of sources within the patient’s medical record to verify the work that was done.Medical Coder assigns CPTcodes, ICD-9 codes and HCPCS codes to both report the procedures that were executed. This also has done to furnish the medical coder with all the necessary information to process a claim for reimbursement by the appropriate insurance agency.
For getting appropriate results, this medical coding specialist will review the history of patients, test the results and also they even interact with the patient’s doctor to get the missing information.
Responsibilities of Medical biller:
Medical Biller is a person responsible mainly for entering medical codes into special billing software for submitting insurance claims to the insurance companies. They are merely responsible for understanding insurance procedures so that the claims can be submitted accurately.
They play a significant role in helping patients to understand their insurance benefits.
Doctors tend to use code data to track their performance and prevent fraud and error that might harm patients.
Medical Coding Certification:
Presently, it avails two main national certifications such as
To get certified, you need to pass any one of the above exams anywhere in US or selected centers abroad.
Passing score on the CPC exam – 70%
You must write the exam for for 5 hours 40 minutes with 150 multiple choice questions.
This test covers the topic, including ICD-9-CM or ICD-10-CM, HCPCS, medical terminology, anatomy, anesthesia, radiology, pathology, medicine, evaluation and management.
You need to prepare well for the exams or have to get training in the reputed institutes because both CPC and CCS-P is tougher one.
Generally, Certificate programs will take about a year to complete its course.
Medical Billing and Coding Degree Programs:
You can progress and develop your skills that could help you accomplish your goals of starting a new career as a medical biller and coder.
The jobs in this field are enormous and they also are expected to raise 22% in the next few years.
This career degree program includes updated content on both ICD-9 and ICD-10 coding.
Successful graduates may find job opportunity in such roles as a medical coder, medical billing specialist or insurance claim analyst.
Salary Range for Medical Coders:
How much do coders really earn?
What are the specialties and certifications need to shine in this field?
Experience and certification rise a medical coding specialist’s earning potential.
There is always a salary difference between the certified coder and non-certified coder
Certified coder – $43,100
Non-certified coder – $36,500
Salary may be based on your location you start at. For example the medical coders working in California earned in a range of $42,270 in 2012, while Illinois earned $36,510 in the same year
Average salaries by hours:
$14.73/hour at the initial period
$19.33/ hour after 5 years
$21.75/hour after 10 years
$23.37/hour after 15 years
Normally the people who enter in this field might earn less than those people who have more experience in this field. Hence, salary is not the matter whereas experience and certification plays a tremendous role in this field.
According to U.S Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS),
Medical coders fall in the order of medical records and health information technicians.
Classification software is the kind of software they use for assigning clinical codes to treatments and diagnosis received for the purpose of reimbursement and data analysis.
What type of Surrounding does Medical Coder have?
Once they have completed their training and acquired certification, they may find enormous career opportunities in a medical and surgical hospital, physician office, nursing care facilities, clinics, home health care service, outpatient care facility, insurance company, pharmaceutical, medicine manufacturing industry and much more.
The paramount number of employment will be in medical and surgical hospital that is followed by physician’s offices, nursing care facilities, outpatient care centers and home health care services.
The working environment can vary depending on where they work.
Generally, coders who work in medical centers, dental offices or physician’s office work on full-time during the day, whereas those who work in hospitals, outpatient clinics or any other medical facilities are open 24/7. It may be required for the employees to work on evenings and weekends.
By conclusion, we can say that training and certifications has major advantages to a medical coder seeking employment, experience and skills also aids with the advancements in this field. By having all this together, a medical coder may ultimately become a medical and health service manager or health care executive.