Medical coding is an investment for your future- not an expense

Remember your visit to a doctor; your health provider would receive a bill containing a current procedural terminology (CPT) for the evaluation, diagnosis of the ailments through requisite tests like X-Ray, blood test, etc. This CPT code is what is what medical coding. The advancements and ever-changing needs of the healthcare industry facilitate the integration of data in healthcare.

Need and scope of medical coding:

Statistics indicate that around 9800 CPT codes are generated for every type of health care service offered by clinical practitioners. Also, there are 14,000 international classifications of diseases for which there are specified clinical codes for medical diagnoses.
A trained medical coder reviews the medical records to assign the codes and ensure the proper reimbursement services. The crucial role of a medical coder entails studying the medical evaluation by the doctors, assigning codes and determining what the patient is availing services.

Skills involved in medical coding:

Knowledge and competency of medical coding also involve private payer policies and government regulations for fundamental billing purposes and reduces the risk of loss in revenue by the doctors.
A certified professional coder demonstrates his proficiency and accuracy that entices
• Physician’s services,
• Surgery centers, hospitals and health care systems.
• Abstracting the correct diagnosis and procedural code.
• Handling of the back office operations of the hospitals and medical practitioners.
• Skills and efficiency in the review, processing and submitting the medical claims.

The data orientation involved in the work needs a careful review of the patient’s chart. The cruciality of the role necessitates that the coders should keep themselves upgraded about the new rules and regulations and the latest medical terminology and anatomy.
Prospective career: With an average range earning potential of $3000 to $50000 per year, medical coders can establish themselves substantially in the job market with a higher potential. According to the annual survey of AAPC, certified medical coders earn more than 21% in contrast to non-certified coders. Statistics also indicate that health care industry forms the major component of all the sectors of the economy.
Save your money, register and earn through your health care management certification at Joshi’s.
Investing your future career entails online/associate/bachelor’s degree in the field, alongside the medical and computer skills in basic biology and software related to computer billing.

Career and proficiency:

As a medical coder, you would be liaising between the health care provider and insurance companies, as you hold the demographic information associated with the patient as well as the summary of the treatment. The medical coder also analyses the purpose of claims filling, nature of illness, list of medication, playing a significant role in medical decision making and evaluation of the patient history. The skills and software like ICD-9-CM and CPT codes help in claim processing which transmits the claim to the insurance company through electronic data interchange, ANSI 837 and CMS-1500. Being a medical coder, you would find handling crucial data of health insurance claims, billing management and documentation, electronic data interchange and modification, health insurance and managed care.
Thus the field of medical coding provides an alluring career in higher level medical management. An efficient coder has a crucial role in ensuring the financial success of a physician.
Thus opting for a career in the field of medical coding is an investment itself for your future.