Medical Billing and Coding Blog
Medical Coding
Medical Billers and Coders are Crucial to Efficient Electronic Medical Records
According to an October 2009 article from the Washington Post, “In a healthcare debate characterized by partisan bickering, most lawmakers agree on one thing: American medicine needs to go digital”. The article, entitled “Electronic medical records not seen as a cure-all”, outlines many of the problems currently clouding the shift to electronic medical records (EMR). It is [...]
Medical Billers and Coders: The Unsung Heroes of Medical Offices
Doctors and nurses are at the forefront of patient care, and receive most of the attention associated with running a medical office. Behind the scenes, however, medical and billing and coding specialists serve vital roles in maintaining a successful healthcare facility. Here is a quick rundown of some of the responsibilities of medical billers and coders: [...]
Achieving an Electronic Medical Record
The implementation of an electronic medical record is not an easy task for medical offices. The process can be expensive, sophisticated, and time consuming, especially for smaller medical offices with limited resources. According to a study in Health Affairs it costs about $44,000 per physician to install an electronic health records system, and that is not [...]
What Does the Federal Stimulus Mean for Medical Billing and Coding?
With billions of dollars being invested into healthcare technology and America’s imminent transfer to exclusively electronic medical records, billing and coding professionals will become increasingly vital to healthcare facilities throughout the country. As more healthcare facilities undertake an electronic medical record system, there will be an increase in job openings for medical billing and coding professionals, [...]
Healthcare Technology and Obama’s "American Recovery and Reinvestment Act"
President Obama’s healthcare stimulus package will serve as a catalyst for the long-awaited shift to electronic medical records (EMR) in America. Obama addressed the American Medical Association in June and said that “We do a better job tracking a FedEX package in this country that we do tracking a patient’s health records”. Upon assuming the reigns [...]
The Right People for Medical Billing and Coding
Medical billing and coding professionals represent a small niche of a large medical community. Most healthcare professionals must possess great communication skills and have the ability to interact with all types of people. Medical billing and coders are unlike most healthcare professionals; they spend the majority of their days by themselves, often times never interacting [...]
What is a Certified Professional Coder?
A Certified Professional Coder (CPC) is the most basic and entry level of medical coders, and the first step that most take when starting a career in medical billing and coding. A prospective CPC must pass the medical coding certification exam, which is sponsored by the American Academy of Professional Coders (AAPC). To prepare for [...]
What do Medical Billing and Coding Professionals Do?
Every time a patient visits a medical office, a comprehensive record of procedures, testing, and diagnoses is kept. Medical Billing and Coding professionals are responsible for assembling and organizing the patient’s information and correctly entering it into a computer database. A specific code is assigned to every diagnosis and treatment that a doctor uses, which [...]
