Vicki Said:

career in medical coding and billing?

We Answered:

I graduate as a medical assistant with an associates degree. I had to take a coding course and feel sorry for those who are a coding major. Physicians offices are now moving towards electronic medical records and automatic coding. Coding major requires coding I, advanced coding, medical terminology, adavanced terminology and etc. After getting a coding certificate you have to pass the national coders exam to become nationally certified. The exam is 6 hours and cost at least $200. This also doesn't guarantee a job. Community colleges offer basic classes and is the cheapest route to go. Medical billing is a total different major... if anything look into that

Philip Said:

Why is anatomy and physiology important in the career of Medical Coding?

We Answered:

So that you can pick out the diagnosis and prcoedures faster. Plus, if you are trying to locate a proper code for femur fracture, it would be a good idea to know what a femur is : ).

Evelyn Said:

Is medical coding career good to start with?

We Answered:

I'm a certified medical biller & coder in the U.S. and here it is about $1500 for a course that preps you for the national exam and teaches you the basics of coding. For me, it was a 16 week course, 2X a week and at the end, we took the national exam (which is an additional $200). I passed the exam and thought it would be very easy to get a position in a physician's office. (I was trying to pay for the massive tuition expenses of med school). Unfortunately, when you get certified- you are a CPC-A (certified professional coder- apprentice) and you do not lose the "A" or apprentice status until you have 2 years worth of medical coding in an office environment. So, you are an apprentice until you work in the field for 2 yrs.
At first, it is VERY hard to find an office that will hire someone with no experience, even if you took courses and got certified. They are very misleading when they say that it is an easy field to get into. The pay usually begins around $14 an hour in the NH area. My mother was a coder in the same OB/GYN office for 17 yrs and now she makes $26 an hour and has had many offers from Massachusetts offices to make up to $35 an hour. Good luck, Feel free to contact me if you need more info!