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How To Become a Medical Coder

In order to be a medical coder, you must first have a high school diploma. Next, you would need to take classes in order to receive your certificate in medical coding. There are many vocational schools and colleges which offer this course. The courses are taught by certified medical coding teachers. Students of these courses are taught the fundamentals of medical coding. They are also taught to dissect real world medical charts and cases, to learn how to extract the most relevant information. In order to pass the class, you must get at least a 70% on the CPC exam. This exam is a 5 hour and 40 minute exam, containing 150 multiple choice questions. During the exam, you would be tested on the following topics:

 

  • ICD-9 CM or ICD-10 CM
  • HCPCS
  • Medical terminology
  • Anatomy
  • Anesthesia
  • Radiology
  • Pathology
  • Medicine
  • Evaluation and management

It is important to understand that between 40 and 50 percent of students do not pass their first time taking the test. Once you do pass, you will be certified through either AAPC's Certified Professional Coder (CPC), or AHIMA's Certified Coding Specialist (CCS).


Where Do Medical Coders Work?

Medical coders work in doctor's offices, hospital, clinics, or for an outside billing agency, who handles various accounts. This is typically a 9 to 5 job, in an office. Many medical coders work from home as well.

What Do Medical Coders and Billers Do?


A medical coder will go through a patient's chart, in search for procedures which were done at the time of visit, and a diagnosis which goes along with the procedure. A medical biller will take those codes, and use them to fill out an insurance claim form. This form is what is sent to the insurance company for payment. If there is a problem, and the insurance is denying the claim, the medical biller would contact the insurance company to find out what the problem is, and get them to pay the claim.




How Much Money Do Medical Coders and Billers Make?

The salary for medical coding and billing varies. First, your pay rate would depend on your certification, experience, the medical facility that you are working for, and the specialty that you are in.

The annual salary for a medical coding starts at $34,000, and can go up to $62,000 if you have a specialist position.


If you are looking into hourly rate positions, the average earnings for someone with a CPC or CCA certification is between $16 and $19. Once you have been working as a medical coder and biller for between 5 and 7 years, your pay rate can go up to $19 to $29 per hour.


The highest pay per hour rate is $30+ dollars and hour. This rate is reserved for specialist medical coders, such as those in Neuropsychiatry and Rheumatology.


With the proper certification and experience, you can find a very lucrative career in medical coding and billing.